Me, myself and I

The poses may be exaggerated, but in these fashions I feel myself. And if that must involve silly posing, I don't really care.
Who would, in a dress like this? 

The unstructured shape, the loose, fluid lines, the freedom of movement, the lightness of fabric, the enticing sheerness, I love everything about it!...  I could be a butterfly, just stretching out of its cocoon and ready to plunge into the beautiful, wild, crazy, wide open unknown.

Speaking of which, a cocoon coat wouldn't be amiss...Ecstatic revery and joke aside, I can't even begin to tell you how liberating it feels to wear a dress in which I don't have to pretend having breasts.

Also, after missing out on other beauties, it's great to come upon such a treasure. This dress wasn't even meant to fit me, it was described as being a lot larger, so imagine my surprise when it arrived and happened to fit perfectly. Also, apart from 2 tiny eraser holes, it's in top condition! And look at that beautiful embroidered detail on the sleeve!

The only thing is that black really doesn't do anything for me, but this style on the other hand allows me to wear various camisoles underneath so I can bring in color and vary it and match my accessories. Sorry about the shoes by the way, I forgot them on from trying the dress on with something else first. Not that they looked that great with that either...

Back to the dress, it was meant for my little Etsy shop, but I really doubt that I'll be able to part with it. I am so very very bad, but it's so very very pretty...

What I really wanted to wear...

But like usual I am left with my day dreaming...However a realistic, certainly achievable New Year resolution would be to learn how to use that self timer...

Bride in my bedroom

Details at deliadelia on etsy

Now I know the title of this might sound rather dubious, but that's what I've been playing at in this dress while trying to take some photographs for my etsy shop.
Alas, when I got married it was all rather too quick a register office affair, and what I wore didn't measure up against many of the more common species of wedding dresses, let alone a vintage beauty like this one.
I have since wished, and longed, and planned for a proper wedding, but that dream hasn't come true. It doesn't stop me though from parading around the bedroom in beautiful 1930s dresses and imagining how wonderful things could have been.
Or, more to the point, what a fantastic wedding a girl out there could have, swinging at the arm of a charming gentleman, or swipping everybody off their feet at a garden party...What do you think?

Exotic drama queen

Egyptian style deco necklace from firelightanitques ebay, now sold;
Gold compact from shakespeare86 ebay;
Gold shoes, adelinesattic, etsy, now sold;
Black perfume bottle, etsy, sources not noted for the rest.

There's something about bookends

1930's bookends from vintagespecial on etsy

There's something about bookends that conveys to me the coziness and protective grounds of a proper home.
The time spent with the books not only to read them but to look after them surely must show for a soundness of character.
The sheer exhilaration of plunging in world after world other than your own (oh how I could write hymns to escapism) only comes once one has taken firm steps to lock outside the crazy pace of what we overrate as reality. Then comes the quiet happiness of showcasing them, these soul and mind feeders. It's a way to delimitate a personal corner that shows a certain degree of self respect. Or so I imagine.
Needless to say I'm lacking bookends in my life altogether.

Stag bookends from HydrangeaRow on etsy

Art deco bookends from englishpreserves on etsy

1940's acorn bookends from JaysTreasures on etsy

Mid century elephant bookends from fieldsofsea on etsy

Comedy and tragedy bookends from thevintagehideaway on etsy


Copper deco horse bookends, now sold, from oldandwise on etsy

Back to deco

Back to blue

Blue glass and enamel bracelet from showmeyourfamilyjewels on Ebay;
Blue hat from catspajamasvintage on Ebay;
Lee Morgan jazz single from robbiemusic on Ebay;

1930 music sheet from abq-collectibles on Ebay;

Art deco silver compact from bleueclectic on Etsy.

The small things that make us happy

from TheOrdinaryBeauty, darling little mother of pearl buttons on a gorgeous card

from BAYTREEGIFTS, Sheffield scissors with a long and elegant shape

from the same, a beautiful oriental bottle with a hand painted

heron design and enameled body

moving to a completely different part of the world, yet to be found in the same shop, this Norwegian silver and enamel brooch makes winter dreamworthy

from curiousknopf, an art deco German coffee set from the 1920s,
not perfect but oh so charming to me!

from starfreckles, a 1920's aeroplane pin that I fell in love with at the first glance

from HeyVivDiscovered, a mustard celluloid manicure kit with
a scene of Balaton Lake in Hungary, a 1930's souvenir

from bubblepipe,
these 1920s lantern shaped Christmas light bulbs sing to my heart

from scottishart, more winter gorgeousness with an art deco

original lacquer chocolate box from the 1920's

from AnotherWomansTreasur, beautiful illustration on this vintage piano sheet

from leesasimpson, stunning enamel and silver earrings

from JOEBERN, a beautifully shaped art deco French compact
that still has the powder and rouge inside!

This time my fancies carried me out and around the world of vintage fashion and I found myself gravitating, as always, towards the unassuming little objects that seem to give a lift to my heart. So here I am, sharing this week's Etsy finds, and hoping to spread a little happiness.

The wonderful world of combs

The earliest combs were made of bone, ivory and wood;
silver, brass and tin were used later on, and in the early to mid-19^th century, tortoise shell and horn became the common materials for comb making.
The advantage of using tortoise shell and horn was that these materials were soft and moldable when heated and they retained their new shape as they hardened.
The feathers of the Chinese Kingfisher were also used at one point in time for designing the combs.

In the late-19^th century, celluloid was developed through the experiments of two brothers, Isaiah and John Hyatt, who used nitro-cellulose and camphor as primary ingredients.
The aim was to find a cheaper alternative to ivory and tortoise shell. Celluloid rapidly grew popular, leading to the formation of a whole new comb industry.

There are numerous examples of celluloid combs - some in museums due to their quality and beauty - other still out there within the reach of the vintage fashion lover.
There is also an Antique Comb Collectors Club funded not very long ago, in 1993, and contributing to further research in the comb's history.

Check out the Etsy examples bellow:

All the above combs are part of the extensive collection of ElrondsEmporium onEtsy

Storiesfromthepast, Etsy

TheLittlestSister, Etsy

MattiesMenagerie, Etsy

Vintageartshome, Etsy

leesasimpson, Etsy

hblanchard25, Etsy

If I was a magpie...

Victorian scarab bracelet, nouveaumotley, etsy

1920's beaded snake, daggerlane, etsy

Edwardian agate brooch, thepickers, etsy

1930s glass necklace and earrings set, marvita13, etsy

Carved ivory pineapple pendant, socaljewelbox, etsy

Blue glass wired necklace, chicvintageboutique, etsy

Hand painted celluloid brooch, iamcameo2, etsy

Carved celluloid necklace, ChezVous, etsy

Art Deco bakelite and rhinestone pin, vintagehippiechic, etsy

1940s Stuart Nye silver earrings, jeanjeanvintage, etsy

Pastel faceted celluloid beads, Elsewind, etsy