January 2017 • Vintage Frills

I have a wardrobe absolutely packed with lovely dresses, if in doubt I always wear a dress. However hanging unworn and neglected I also have a lot of vintage separates, mostly skirts and trousers. This year I decided to buy fewer dresses and start thinking about things I need to fill the gaps in my wardrobe and one of the things on my list was to get a few blouses. When Pretty Retro offered me a top of my choice to review on the blog, I took the opportunity to invest in one of their lovely vintage style blouses.

Pretty Retro are the sister brand of House of Foxy and have a great selection of reproduction vintage items, including lots of basics and wardrobe staples. The blouse, is a simple 40s style blouse with an elegant v-neck and large tortoiseshell plastic buttons. It has gathers at the shoulders to give it that perfect vintage detail and darts for a great fit. It is made with viscose, so it hangs beautifully.

It is designed to be worn tucked in to swing trousers and pencil skirts, but I wanted to go for my own look with this one, so I wore it over a pair of original vintage wool trousers by Pendleton. I like creating a classic look, with both modern and vintage influences, which is what I tried to achieve with this outfit. I really like that the blouse is long enough to be worn tucked in or out of trousers.

I paired the blouse and trousers with a vintage handbag, lots of bakelite bangles and a vintage plastic necklace. I also wore my trusty Orla Kiely shoes (which I wear with everything!) I put a pair of warm mustard socks underneath to fight off the winter chill.

I went for my usual size 14 and I think the fit is just right. I was really happy with the fit across the bust as there is no gaping and the darting and gathers help it to fit around the body perfectly. The website mentions that the blouse will shrink by about 3% in the wash, mine shank a little but not enough to alter the overall fit. It should be hand washed or dry cleaned to keep it looking its best.

This is a great addition to any vintage wardrobe as it can be worn with so many different things. I’m already planning to wear it with everything from jeans to my high-waisted shorts in the summer. It would also be perfect for under a vintage suit, something I really want to get my hands on this year.

Price wise the blouse costs £39, which I think is excellent value for something of such lovely quality that I’ll wear a lot. The blouse is also available in black, which I would really like as well.

I am really happy with my new blouse and would definitely recommend it as a fantastic flexible garment. I love the fit and feel of it and that it will work very well with my original vintage garments. I’d really like to show some other looks that could be created with this, so if I can get a willing friend to take some more pics for me, I’ll show you some more outfit ideas soon.

View the full range of tops on the Pretty Retro website.

Well I’ve had a little time away from the blog over the last few weeks, for lots of reasons. While I’ve been focussing on other things and spent lots of time with people who are important to me, I’ve also taken a little time to think about the new year and new beginnings. I’m not that keen on resolutions, so I haven’t made any this year. I do want to make a few changes to the blog. I’m not 100% sure what they are yet, but I’m working on it!

If you were reading the blog over December, you’ll see that I was taking part in Blogmas. I can’t actually believe I managed 21 days of Blogmas, that was quite a challenge. In the end I decided to skip the last 3 days, as the kids had finished school and I just wanted to spend that time with them. I was pretty happy with what I did manage over December though.

Going forward this year, I want to do lots more creative stuff so you can expect a bit more of that side of the blog over the next few months. I’m also determined to do some vintage hair tutorials and lots more outfit posts as they’re always my favourites to do.

As I mentioned in my year in vintage outfits post, I’d like to explore different eras of fashion a bit more this year, especially the 1920s. I’ve been spending some time researching clothes from the era, as well as looking at old family photos to see what my relatives were wearing, which has been really umpiring. There will definitely be some of my inner fashion geek coming out in my posts. Having said that, so far this year I’ve made zero effort and worn my comfy jeans and sweaters everyday, but my priorities have definitely been elsewhere, so it doesn’t really matter.

In other news I’ve spent the last couple of days listing some new stock on my Etsy store. There is lots of lovely vintage jewellery, hair accessories and some 1950s stockings. I have so much more to list over the next few days including some bakelite and some mid century dresses, so keep checking back.