This is a bit of a teaser: Hong Kong's MIME Vintage is launching a new website soon and I'll have details about buying the kinds of incredible clothes shown in these amazing photographs. I don't think I've ever seen such an impressive collection of vintage, from the styles to the patterns and fabrics. Their fabulous finds are from Hong Kong/China, Japan, Korea, Portugal and France. MIME is a Hong Kong-based collaboration between a stylist, Juju, and a photographer, Qiqi - two close friends... Read Full Story
Photo: Imke Klee for Trend Union PARIS
You may well know by now that I have a propensity for daydreaming about the world being a particular kind of beautiful, prompted by inspiring images that resonate so deeply I'm convinced I was born with certain visual predilictions. (I guess the synaethesia would explain that. And I've always had trouble concentrating so I've just accepted the mental wandering as a part of who I am and have stopped apologising for it!)
Flickr: Purpess... Read Full Story
I used to spend a lot of time on Etsy working on my shop, posting in the forums and seeing what great things the handmade community were doing, and then I started blogging. There just isn't enough time to get around to everything I love online, but Etsy is one place I have to check in with regularly. If you're not already an Etsy enthusiast, it's a handmade marketplace and wonderful resource overflowing with independent talent of all kinds - fashion, jewellery and accessories, furniture... Read Full Story
I'm very serious! I've only seen one person ever on the street using one, it was in Toronto and I believe she was Japanese and therefore she could totally get away with it (not Lolita, just wearing regular clothes and walking underneath it on a blistering summer day). It was several years ago and I thought You are awesome. I want one but I would look like an idiot . That was when I cared what people think. Since then I have pushed a baby out of my nether region in front of an audience and... Read Full Story
Since I've been back with my family in Canada for the summer, I've been taking another look at the photos that have been displayed on the walls of my grandparents' basement for as long as I've existed, with renewed interest. The thing I find most fascinating is how the oldest ones capture a very specific fashion moment in time, whereas more recent decades are generally harder to pinpoint (unless you count rocker hair and Madonna-esque accessorising which most certainly betrays an adherence... Read Full Story
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Jane Powell cut-outs from Nostalgic Nana I'm not completely sure why I'm intrigued by vintage paper dolls at the moment, maybe it's the combination of nostalgia, retro fashion and the tangible quality of being able to hold it all in your hand and play dress-up that appeals to me right now. Oddly, I didn't get much out of it as a little girl. I recall being very young when I was first given a box of cutie cut-outs and despite my love of paper and using it to make anything and everything... Read Full Story
After reading a previous post on Noa Noa's fabulous spring and high summer collection , Swelle Life reader (and very Swelle girl) Tammy commented on how much she loves the swim cap/turban look and may be daring to try it. Let's give her a big round of applause!!!! I'll bet with that encouragement she'll not only do it but also send pictures (maybe, possibly??)
To get her on her way, I've looked for online shops that sell the sweet vintage-style caps (I'd go with 'in the style of... Read Full Story
A very lovely friend of mine is getting married soon. Her wedding style is 1930s-inspired and her dress is a gorgeous ivory strapless, to be worn with a sensational birdcage veil. (If you're about to plan a wedding, I'll bet you're buzzing with ideas right now!)
She's looking for a vintage clutch in ivory to carry on the day. While the actual bag will likely be procured during an in-the-flesh shopping expedition, it's always wise to do a bit of work beforehand (the fun kind) so you have... Read Full Story
The idea of searching for vintage fashion doesn't typically rouse notions of clean, bright, and easy. Sometimes only the die-hard devotee can stomach the olfactory nightmare that can be vintage shops (do the salespeople actually get used to the smell of musty polyester and mothballs?). By the time you've rummaged through enough dim and dusty racks to discover that ever-elusive designer dress (the one you convinced yourself existed in the first place), you're well overdue for some fresh air... Read Full Story
