Lazy Sunday

Yesterday we went for a walk around a  pretty village nearby - will need to take some better pictures of the actual place sometime and share them with you, it really is charming. 

I mixed vintage and modern for a 30's inspired look, you see yet more of my wide leg linen trousers, with a modern silk blouse that was love at first sight and vintage crochet cardigan and bag. 

The cardigan just about fits but I wish it was a tad bigger (those incredibly small openings for arms - how tiny can these things get?!). Such a lovely thing though, with the cutest clear glass buttons and barely there collar (which of course doesn't sit right in the pics...).

It was one of those late summer days when you feel already a chill in the air, the unmistakable clue of what's to come and, like a ripple of anguish on the calm surface of a pond, the nostalgia of something that has been, but is no more.

And some more vintage goodies...

I have now introduced more items in my etsy store sale, and further reduced others. Have a peek (below are just some examples).

If the price is still not cutting it for you, do approach me with an offer. Although I don't promise anything, I may be able to knock off a pound or two...

Summer Sale now on at Delia & Delia Vintage Apparel!

My etsy store is currently having a summer sale! There is something for everyone and a lot of things are reduced, between 10 and 30% (40% in one case!), regardless of their newness in the shop, so it's rather good if I may say so myself  :)(nothing like a bit of self promotion)!
Shipping prices are for recorded, signed for delivery; I can always offer you a better deal there if you prefer standard shipping, but bear in mind that, while a lot cheaper, it doesn't include compensation in those unfortunate cases where something gets damaged or lost in transit.
I leave you with some examples of reduced stock below, while the display on the right shows full price stock currently available in the store.

Sudeley Castle - a romantic setting for a 1930's summer outfit

 

The last in the series of outfits worn during those few days spent with my friend is one (finally) fully vintage. 30's dress and bag, 40's Gold Cross Lastex shoes, Soviet amber cherry brooch, and shapeless straw hat of dubious origin (same as here).

We went to Winchcombe and Sudeley Castle for the afternoon where we faced the disappointment of not being able to find all of the 9 extensive gardens they advertise. Still, that wall was worth it. Shame I wasn't inspired enough to make more of it (and the entrance price) photos wise. But hey, some of us are made to live our lives in regret, and that's just that.

Naughty spot for a 1920's child

 

 ...I had to sit there for a little while until the tantrum passed. 

I'm not going to go into details, suffice to say that - explained or not - mood swings are part of my lovely personality. 

The deep well of calm of my childhood and teenage years must have spared wast energy resources which I spend nowadays flaring up at the smallest opportunity. Add to that the strong call of the genes claiming what's theirs and the (not so) funny way life has of transforming bland children into angry adults. In any case, in my menopausal years I expect to be a walking tempest.  

 

But for now the tempest passed and I was able to enjoy what was left of an otherwise wonderful summer day, together with the shredded remnants of the initial good mood that had prompted me to put that outfit on (vintage skirt and blouse ensemble from etsy, vintage crochet bag, modern shoes and charity shop dumped hat). 

We had gone for a walk in Tewkesbury, my friend and I,  and you can see the Mill building behind us, and a bit of the canal. The highlight of the afternoon was the visit to the Abbey, where at 6 o'clock I was asked to relieve them of my presence under the pretext of having to close the grounds. I can't keep wondering though if my eating away (I mean, prolonged) from their mulberry tree could have possibly had anything to do with it...

Red handed, purple tongued, naughty and shameless... Yours, truly.

...And dottier (a story of 1930's resort wear taken too far from the beach)

I guess I'm not fooling anyone with my resort look - muddy waters and happily growing weeds make for anything but Riviera. Although beautiful in its own right, the Gloucester Docks background did little for my outfit.
 In fact it looks as if I'm just about to peel off the wallpaper and take my cheesy 'jamas to bin burn 'em away in shameful solitude. Perhaps I should have done so, as soon as I heard the cringing comparison to Lady Gaga. Not even the horror of that is responsible for my butter wouldn't melt expression (simply read "bitch") and frozen, painfully rigid body posture.
You wouldn't be to blame if you didn't realize it was a glorious summer day and I thoroughly enjoyed wearing what looks like a circus outfit. 

Dotty, spotty and nautical - a modern flirt with 1930's casual chic

My best friend came to stay for a few days and we were out and about each day enjoying the good weather she always brings with her. Here we are in Ross-on-Wye, for a spot of riverside walking. Any excuse really, just to wear the perennial nautical inspired attire that has become a summer staple, generation after generation. Regardless of specific fashions, there seems to be a never diminishing fascination for blue and white, dots and stripes, faded cotton, kind-to-skin-linen, raffia and straw. Here is my version of it, nearly entirely modern, but hoping to mimic the style of the early 30's dames who mastered this "cool and casual" look to perfection.

Outfit: 

soft straw hat, thrifted by someone in my family, ended up with me;

Gap Breton top, love the boat neckline, a detail that needs more prominence in my wardrobe;
boxy linen jacket from Monsoon, I've had this a few years, an impulse purchase that is still going strong;

spotty Accessorize silk scarf, worn as a belt;

the LK Bennett linen trousers you've seen a couple of posts ago, only a few weeks old but worn a lot already;

navy tennis shoes, one of 4 pairs which I am rotating this summer (I am one of those crazy people who, when they like like something, they buy it in all the colors available...)

50's/60's raffia bag, the only vintage contribution to this outfit.