O.K., so to be honest nearly every weekend for me is vintage weekend, but this one was especially vintage packed. On saturday i took a trip to Harrogate, which is such an adorable town, definitely my favourite place to visit in Yorkshire. First stop mind you was refreshments at Betty’s the sweetest little tea rooms that still has a real air of the early 20th century with its curved glass windows and elegant setting.
The best two places to go for vintage are Space boutique (located on the ginnel) and the ginnel antiques centre. Space is great for a bit of everything, they sell a real mix of homeware, vintage clothes, acsessories and jewellery. If you are looking for more retro items i.e. 70’s and 80’s this is the best place to check out, they also have an excellent selection of vintage fashion magazines.
If it is older vintage your after the antiques centre is better, here is “elegant era” vintage, the dealer specialises in 40’s and 50’s vintage (my favourite period, yay!) and has loads of excellent costume jewellery for example Dior and Miriam Haskell. My mum bought me a fantastic copper bracelet with leaves on and also a 50’s pink stone bracelet and earring set.
Sunday was the turn of Leeds town hall vintage fashion fair, which i cannot believe i haven’t ben to before, again an excellent array of vintage, and again a crazy number of dealers recognising me, proof yet again that i go to too many vintage fairs. My purchases were:
– A green snakeskin art deco clutch- £10
– A pair of white Lotus high heel peep-toes (probably 50’s)- £22 (i can just see them now with my Horrockses dress STUNNING!)
– A pair of beautiful 40’s navy suede beaded shoes, still in their original box- £38
I only wish i’d had more time to wander before i had to go to work!

This handbag pretty much defines me, some may say defined by a handbag pah! But, i will always remember this bag and what it started for me. I don’t think i was any older than 7 when my mum came home with it. My mum has always been a BIG fan of charity shops and kitsch old looking things ( everyone calls her house the “cath kidston” house for this reason) and for the last 13 or 14 years she has been buying vintage handbags, i mean this was a time before people really knew got the whole vintage thing, but i think my mum just liked things with a history. I think my Mum picked this one up in a charity shop in Banstead, Surrey (where alot of our vintage handbags have come from) and I’m pretty sure it can’t have cost more than a fiver.I can remember playing with it when i was younger stroking the stunning silk embroidery and imaging the elegant lady who it once belonged to (i’m pretty sure it is a twenties piece). It is something which i have repeatedly revisited, i have used it for inspiration on a number of projects and used it as that perfect acsessory for many an outfit. When i was about 13 and got into serious vintage hunting this was my inspiration project, and i still love it as much today as i did as a 7 year old playing dress-up.