Wednesday, 21 May 2014

Vintage Doll Q&A: A Vintage Vanity

Good day, you gorgeous people! In March, I started a little Q&A series where I will (hopefully!) get my favourite retro Gal's to answer a set of questions I have conjured up. Firstly, I have got the amazing Jennifer from A Vintage Vanity - who is one of my all time favourite Youtubers (Click here to go to her channel!). She is so charismatic and a real joy to watch. Her links are all at the bottom of the page :-) She does amazing tutorials and my personal fav is her 'Its Tea Time' series! So let's be nosey and have a little peek into her lovely life!
 

How long have you been dressing vintage?
I've been dressing vintage for 3-4 years now, but thinking about it I've been doing it my entire life!  I used to hunt through my Mom's cedar chest to pull out and wear pieces of hers and I'd always dress with a classic starlet in mind.  Though it was 3-4 years ago that I fully embraced it and haven't looked back since!  
What made you want to start dressing this way?
I grew up on a steady diet of movies from the 40s-50s-60s and feel in love with the style of the past.  I've always felt connected to the past in some way and found the styles and glamour of the period to be beautiful.  I've always felt uncomfortable trying to follow modern trends, like I was wearing someone else's shoes...backwards.  When I started fully experimenting with vintage as a style it just felt natural and comfortable!  
  
40's or 50's?
Such a hard choice so I'm going to cheat a little bit!  For hair it would be the 40s, I adore victory rolls and there is nothing more glamorous than sleek waves like Lauren Bacall.  There is nothing that makes me happier (clothes wise) than the swish and swirl of a fabulous circle skirt so the 50s is my fashion haven.  
  
Favorite colour? 
It keeps changing!  Overalll it's red...I grew up with that image of the sultry "lady in red" that led John Dillinger to his demise and have been obsessed with the color ever since.  Right now I embrace any bright color that brings out the pink hair!  Coral, mint, and yellow are going to be everywhere in my outfits this summer!
5 staples every vintage girl should own?
I love this question!  :D  The problem is narrowing it down between clothes, hair, and make-up!  lol  So I'll try to cover a bit of everything!
1.  Liquid liner to create that fabulous winged liner
2.  An amazing red or pink lipstick
3.  A circle skirt because it never fails to put a spring in your step
4.  Foam rollers...get fabulously long lasting curls in a shorter amount of time
5.  A hair accessory...bow, flower, feather...just something fun and bright!

Signature hair do'?
I change up my hair so much that I'm not sure if I have a signature do!  A couple of styles that I absolutely love to do is classic victory rolls, they always make me feel sassy.  Plus they are a perfect way to turn a bad hair day into an amazing one!  On days when I prefer to sleep in (which is more often than I care to admit) I like to roll my bangs forward, backcomb the heck out of a ponytail and roll it forward, add a scarf and ta-da sassy do!  
  
Authentic or Reproduction?
I love them both.  Authentic is great when you can get it, but with my body shape it change be hard to fit in the authentic sizes plus my pocketbook limits me as well.  I find myself with a few authentic pieces and filling out the rest of my wardrobe with reproduction.  There are a lot of great reproduction stores out there and when I can't find what I'm looking for I'll start shopping the vintage patterns and make something.  A lot of the bigger pattern makers are starting to re-release their vintage patterns, which is great for us crafty folks!  

Your biggest style icon?
  My biggest style icons are Audrey Hepburn, Doris Day, and Ginger Rogers.  I love Audrey's easy elegance, she had a way of styling herself to what worked for her instead of trying to fit in someone else's style.  In Roman Holiday they wanted her to wear the sleeves of her button down top long (to disguise the skinniness of her arms), but she didn't like the way it looked or felt so she rolled them up and embraced her arms!  I love how Doris embraced bright colors and had an easy girl next door glamour about her, an easiness about her.  Ginger was just everything.  She had a stunning fluid elegance about her and seeing her in ballgown was show stopping but she also embraced the "tomboy" style just as easily.  All these women just remind me to find what makes you smile and what makes you feel good and make no apologies!

Tea or coffee?
Every morning it's coffee with cream but after that my tea obsession is in full swing!  

Best tip for anyone who wants to start embracing vintage/pin up style?
Style yourself however makes you happy!  Don't worry about mixing decades or matching someone else's style.  Dress for you!  
  
Dream classic car?
It seems to change often, but right now I'm obsessed with a 1956 Chevrolet 210 Delray

Favorite place to shop? 
Too many places!  I really enjoy shopping Dethrose Vintage for authentic vintage, she has such a great variety of styles and the quality is amazing, plus she's always on the lookout for sizes over a 26!  For reproduction I'm currently obsessed with anything Di Brooks does, Billy Jo Retro, and forever in love with Heart of Haute.
  
To accessorize or not to accessorize?
Always accessorize!  :D  I love adding accessories to my hair and for jewelry I'm always on the lookout for kitchy or big and chunky styles.

Cash or Presley?
 I love to dance it up (albeit not well) so I'll have to go with Elvis

Are you looking forward to any events this year?
I'm super excited to see Imelda May in concert again and I always look forward to the Rockabilly Rumble here in Chicago...great music and even better looking people

Summer or Winter gal?
  Neither!  I love the change of seasons, there is always a sense of new beginnings and rebirth during that time.  I'm firmly a Fall and Spring gal!  ;D

Dream holiday?
Traipsing all over Europe with a backpack, you'd be surprised how many crinolines I can fit in a backpack!  

 Can you recommend any retro-inspired blogs?
There is a lot of great ones out there, so I apologize for any I don't mention but I'm constantly checking in on:



Jennifer
www.youtube.com/koontzfan2
A Vintage Vanity
~Hair Tutorials ~DIY ~Reviews ~Vintage Lifestyle ~And much more

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