Vintage Glee Mash up

As most of you must know by now, one of the most popular shows on TV is Glee. Glee chronicles the adventures of a high school glee club and their challenges, triumphs etc. interspersed with life lessons and most wonderfully, vintage songs from the 60s, 70s, 80s as well as current hits. I could never understand why Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" or Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" became so popular among my high school students until I started watching Glee. It is the only show that really makes me feel good after watching it. It is like watching those old musicals from the 50s. The great thing is that each character on Glee has a definitive fashion look that I have tried to mash up with our own Witchery Vintage clothing. The meaning of the term, “mash-up,” is described as what happens “when you take two songs and mash them together to make an even richer explosion of musical expression.”  In other words, two songs that might not initially seem to belong together are blended, the process of which reveals unexpected connections between the songs and might even yield an even stronger work than either one is on its own.
Well, the Witchery Vintage has done just that! Even though some of the clothes may not be an exact match, the unexpected connections that it makes to the Glee character and to one's own unique tastes creates an even stronger look all its own! Enjoy!

Kurt's military look is covered here with Steampunk Army 1960s suit from the Witchery Vintage.

Rachel Berry's character is played by Lea Michele's red carpet look can be copied for a fraction of the price! Megan is modelling the Peach Queen prom dress on Etsy on sale now.

Emma Pilsbury, the school's guidance counsellor is single handedly bring back teacher chic with ruffle blouses and cardigans, Emma's look is so 1960s. I would love to see Emma is this Witchery Vintage item called Vampire's Kiss especially in a Twilight type episode!

Tina is so much fun and her goth look is so cool! Here I am channelling Tina and The Adams Family in a black jumper and white blouse called Night at The Museum

Santana's love of stripes and fur is evident is this episode outlining the dangers of drinking. The fur vest I had has been sold but this Bleu Nuit shirtdress is available now.

I love Sue and her sardonic approach to life. Even though The Witchery Vintage didn't have an athletic suits to offer, I picked this Nautical Sailor Dress for $42 as a fair compromise. Think Sue would approve?

Rachel is known for her feminine yet quirky looks and this plaid skirt offers just the right combination. Lindsay channels Rachel in thisvintage red plaid skirt called Boston Common from the Witchery Vintage.

Quinn is so feminine and truly beautiful that this dress called Betty visits Venice from the 1960s and named for Betty Draper from Mad Men would look absolutely gorgeous on her. Even without the orange piping, this dress offers up alot of similarities in the beauty of Quinn and vintage dressing.

Mercedes is a strong independent girl who loves her curves. I would love to see her in this 1960s mod maxi dress called Calinfornia Dreamin because it inspires and reflects all that she is.

Well, I hope you have enjoyed this little ode to Glee from the Witchery Vintage and hope to do more mash ups in the future. Megan is also very excited because as her Grade 8 Graduation gift, she and I are going to see Glee Live in Toronto in June!  Fun and fashion!

What Yonder Window Brings

Having fun the other day with a gorgeous mint green rosette fascinator that I purchased from a great Etsy shop called Cathy's Vintage Shop. This shop has wonderful vintage clothing but I really love the hats she sells. The model who models that hats is  absolutely stunning and has a gaze that reminds me of an Emily Bronte novel. It is said that the eyes are the window to our soul.  We often gaze out a window waiting or wanting something to happen. When you look out your window, what do you see? What do you want to happen? And who is looking back?

One Last Goodbye to Winter

Today as I returned home from school to melting snow and that hint of spring in the air, I wanted to share my last blast of fun with my girls last weekend. With an ode to winter and all that is good, Megan, Lindsay and I went out for lunch to celebrate Valentines Day and Lindsay's 15th birthday. On the way to our fav cafe, The Llama Bean, we stopped down an alley way that connects parts of old Simcoe. My big smile is in part that I have lost about 8 pounds so far! Yeah! Secondly, the last (hopefully) big snowfall of the year allowed us to create some magical shots with black and red plaid and fur! Enjoy!

Dress: 1980s black and red plaid dress with black velvet cuffs and collar~The Witchery Vintage

Coffee at the Llama Bean

Reading the paper !

Chicken Caesar Wrap~The girls' favourite

Lindsay in a Rabbit Fur Vest aka 70s

It was a great way to end the winter and the icy grip it has had on all of us. Spring, bring it on!

Reinventing Yourself With Vintage

This time of year it is quite common for all of us to look back on the year that has just past and pine for spring's return. Usually such goals as losing weight, saving money or changing jobs are high on a person's resoluation list. I think that by changing your look and in the end, improving your image, you can achieve these goals just by feeling better about yourself. Albeit, this isn't easy and often take deep reflection usually undertaken during long drives home or in a wine induced haze. Nevertheless, think about whether your clothes really reflect who you are? When you look in your closet do you find that alot of your clothes are unworn or purchased out of necessity such as for work. What about the mirror? When you look into it, do you like who looks back? It takes a risk to change your look. Many women just won't cut their hair or change their makeup and use excuses such as "my boyfriend likes long hair". You have to be happy for you before you need to make anyone else happy.
Flirting with vintage clothes and vintage looks in fun because you can go back in time and experiment with a look of the past but in the end its about being unique and taking a risk. Say yourself  "I don't care what people think" and see what happens....
I recently have opted to take some risks by going to a new hairstylist, changing my hairstyle and colour and following Weight Watchers on line to learn to eat healthier~all in one week! I'm pleased with the results. I hope you will be too!

New Louise Brooks Flapper inspired hair style~

How To Get a Modern Day Louise Brooks/Flapper/1920's Look

In anticipation of my Louise Brooks hairdo (the cut with a new hairstylist..yikes...., next Friday) I've decided to share with you how to get the Louise Brooks/Flapper Look from EHow.com  Enjoy!

How to get a modern day Louise Brooks/Flapper/1920's Look,

Louise Brooks at the height of her fame.

You may not know her name, but you should recognize her photo. Louise Brooks is most known today for her innovative style. Though she was not the first to wear the bob hairstyle, she was the first to popularize it. In fact, Louise Brooks is listed as one of the top 10 hairstyle trendsetters of all time.. Louise Brooks is and was the quintessential flapper of the raging 20's

Instructions

1.  The most important part of the flapper look is your hair. Flappers were known for shearing off their long locks and wearing bobbed hair - thus showing disdain for acceptable behavior and showing their own new sense of freedom. So, you need to decide what to do about your hair. 
   
   Just remember that many flappers had bangs or fringe because the forehead was considered not sexy. To modernize it, you could add some side swept bangs or longer bangs - most bangs in the 1920's were cut at just above the eyebrow so you could modernize it by wearing bangs that hit below the eyebrow. 
   
   Do you have long hair - are you unwilling to cut it? Don't worry, you can get the look easily. You have a couple choices. You could try a wig. There are many wigs out there that are natural looking that are made to look similar to flapper hair. Or you could try a faux-bob. It's really easy to achieve! Just use a large barrel curling iron to make large waves in your hair - try curling the sections in alternating directions so they don't all blend together. Then, decide what you want the length to be - jawline to mid-neck is the most universally flattering. Grab a bunch of bobby pins and start tucking the hair under and pinning it. Tada!
   
   Are you thinking about cutting your hair short? Many women are going shorter these days. Short hair is so much easier to take care of and you can easily look more modern and put-together. And despite many opinions, you can actually do more things with short hair than with long hair. You may not be able to pull it into your old stand-by, the ponytail, but you can easily have a different look each day of the week. For a flapper look, you'll want to keep hair between the earlobe and mid-neck length. Anything longer than mid-neck won't be able to qualify as even modern day flapper. Bangs are also something to think about - most young women of the day had bangs. To modernize the look, you could wear them swept to the side or long and blunt cut. You could even try choppy or wispy fringe.
   
   Whatever you decide, remember to keep hair at least mid-neck length or shorter!
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   How lipstick was applied in the 1920's.
   The next step to the modern flapper look is makeup. In the 1920's, a lot of makeup didn't exist and there were only a few colors available. Even though this is a more modern look that we're going for, you don't want to stray too far from the color choices or you'll miss the flapper look altogether. Most flappers were characterized by their pale, flawless skin; their dark lips; and their smoldering eyes. Some girls wore rouge (now called blush) on their cheeks - but only on the apples, not swept up to the temples like we wear it now. The only shades available were: red lipsticks (usually cherry scented), pink blush, black mascara (which was wax based and applied with a stick), ivory colored powder, and kohl eye makeup (no eyeshadows or other colors). Many women also shaved off their eyebrows and penciled them back on in the fashion of the era - it was considered fashionable to have very thin, downward sloping eyebrows.
   
   To modernize the look, start by cleansing and moisturizing your face. If you have uneven skin tone or lots of blemishes, you will need to apply a full coverage foundation that matches your skin. If you don't have uneven tone or lots of blemishes, you can probably get by with a tinted moisturizer. Then, use a concealer that matches your skin to cover up any blemishes that weren't covered by foundation. Brush on a translucent powder to set the look. If you must wear blush, try to go for a pink or pale peach. Put it on lightly, on the apples of your cheeks. If you're going somewhere special, a red or wine colored lip is mandatory. If you're going to work or it's daytime, try a berry colored lip instead. In the '20's, they applied lipstick to the cupid's bow area only - leaving the corners of lips bare. They also extended the lipstick past the line of the lips slightly to more define the cupid's bow - the final product were lips that looked like hearts. (See the added image!). To achieve a similar look in a more modern fashion, apply your lipstick with a brush making sure to define the cupid's bow. Start in the center of the lips and go outward - don't apply hardly any lipstick to the outer corners. You want the center of the lips to be the darkest and have more color than the outer corners. For the eyes, you'll want a volumizing and lengthening mascara. Curl lashes slightly and apply several coats until your lashes are super thick. If you're going out, you could also use black eyeliner to create a cat eye effect.
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   Fashion ideas
   And finally, you need to figure out what to wear. If you're going for a retro vibe, you could shop at vintage stores and flea markets to find clothing from the 20's. If you're trying to be more modern, just wear your normal, everyday fashions. To mix the two together, try simple shift dresses that don't have a lot of shape to them paired with more modern footwear. You could even throw in a few cloche hats into your everyday wardrobe - they make straw ones for summer and wool ones for winter (try etsy.com!). You can throw on a couple long necklaces to add a little retro flare. The best thing to do to figure out what works best for you is to do a google image search for "1920's fashion" and look at the photos to see what you like. Then, try to find similar pieces and incorporate them into your wardrobe. Chances are, you probably have many similar items. For example, t-strap maryjane's were popular in the mid to late 1920's - and they're popular today as well! You either have a pair or you can find a pair at almost any shoe store. Long strands of pearls were popular back then and long necklaces are popular now. Chances are you can easily find a vintage inspired one at your local Target. Also, try the menswear trend out a little bit. In the 20's, many women were just starting to wear pants and trousers for the first time. Many women were experiencing freedom for the first time - finally, no more restrictive hair, corsets, or long dresses! You could also try a vintage inspired headband - Etsy has lots! Look under the 'handmade' section. Good luck!

I found this article fascinating. The women of the 20s were indeed the first feminists and they did it in style. Stay tune for next Friday's post when I will hopefully morph into Louise Brooks albeit with a 'witchy' edge.!