Turn the page 2...

'How to walk in high heels' by Camilla Morton is a witty look at all a girl needs to know about surviving the 21st century. From 'How do I make my remote my friend' to 'How to wear the appropriate underwear' and of course there is a section devoted to hats.

With a title like 'How to deal with bad hair days', how can you go wrong! However I think this quote by contributor Milliner Stephen Jones called 'How to wear a hat' sums it up best, "The simplest black beret worn with attitude is more dramatic than most haute coutre. If clothing was a radio, a hat is the volume control!"

So read and enjoy! Copies are available at amazon.com

Retro markets!

'The Retro Markets' is a monthly event and a great place for anyone who has a liking for vintage Fashion and accessories. It has taken a while for Perth to catch up with the rest of Australia on the vintage market front. Although we still lack the weekly market it's monthly gems like this that make up the gap.

This month the market is on June 27 12-5pm and entry is $3. You can find it upstairs at 'The Burlesque Lounge', 267 William St Northbridge.

It is well worth a look in, I ran out of money by the time I got there last time and I was kicking myself because I couldn't believe how gorgeous everything was! Also watch out for the amazing cupcakes on offer!x

A simple straw!

A straw hat can be a simple solution to an otherwise boring outfit. I bought this hat at the craft and antiques fair and I ended up wearing it that day. Worn at a jaunty angle it looks quite chic, you might also recognise it from this months title graphic!

(Sorry I've cut off the edges my background just wasn't quite wide enough. I need a wider backdrop.)

Hat industry in 1950

If your at all facinated about the hat industry have a look at this film 'Birth of Hat' from 1950 it looks back at the hats from Circe 1912 and shows how a hat is produced in 1950. The hat they make is very similar to the one my grandmother wears in this photo.

Mini trend altert!

I mentioned them last month and after watching 'Sex and the City 2' the movie I can see that they're making a come back!

I'm talking about the turban. However this time around it's worn with long flowing locks. Seen in shades of metallic like Kate Moss for evening and if your Carrie Bradshaw also during the day.

My little prediction for Summer is turbans in two tone printed cotton, worn with a little cardigan over a long flowing printed skirt.

The turban pictured above is fashioned from a vintage scarf I picked up for $4 from the 'La La Orange' closing down sale (sob). Perth will miss you!x

For blue is thy name...

It's been so overcast here, it's been hard to take photo's lately so this hasn't turned out the best (the background is actually white). I bought this a little while ago from the Craft and Antiques fair. It is a little bit dusty but otherwise okay. It was probably made in the 1960's, but that is a guess as there is no label to go from.

My sister wore it to the mad hatters tea party along with an Alana Hill knit and ra ra skirt (all borrowed from me of course). I just thought it was really cute, but it was the stitching that clinched the deal. I have a weakness for stitching!

Turn the page...

'Dreaming of Dior' is for people who love the story behind a vintage find. When I began my hat affair from the first vintage hat I bought I asked about the history. Most of the time they haven't much to tell, so it is refreshing that Doris Darnell has gone to so much effort to not only catalogue the dresses by designer and era, but also by who wore it and when.

I bought this at Christmas and I love flicking through it to read the story connected with each dress. The only disappointment I had with the book, was I didn't get to see a photograph of the dresses only an illustration. However the illustrations are playful and beautiful, so you wont be disappointed!

They only did one print run so it isn't readily available, there are a few on amazon.com

Tea and cake anyone?

What do you have at a Mad Hatters tea party? Vanilla cupcakes with royal icing, lemon tarts with passion fruit syrup, cucumber sandwiches, scones with jam and cream and Earl Grey tea, of course!

A few weeks ago some friends and I gathered to enjoy high tea in celebration of the hat. So enjoy the culinary delights on me! x

Snap!!

This is another Post Office photo this time of my great grandmother. She hated being called grandma and insisted on being called Mater (which actually means mother). She has been described to me as the formidable matriarch of the family and was nicknamed by her second husband 'the Duchess of Claremont' (which was the name of the suburb they lived in).

One of my great aunts once borrowed her fur (without asking) for a date and wore it while on a motor bike. It got caught in the wheel and developed some very large holes. So scared about the ramifications, she pushed it to the back of Maters wardrobe. When a few weeks later Mater found it my great aunt insisted that the moths must have got to it saying "that they have been rather large this year" and apparently she believed it!

The cat that got the cream...mmm!

This delicious cloche was made from an old hat which had seen better days. It was covered in moth holes, but luckily only on the brim. A bit of moulding and trim with two grow grain ribbons et volia, cest fini!

Think pink!

"Banish the black, burn the blue, bury the beige. Think pink!" Lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin, Funny Face 1956. That is how I've been trying to think this month 'to banish the (Winter) blues away'. The movie 'Funny Face' staring Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire has a wonderful score, magical photography and clothes to die for. All of Audrey's clothes were designed by Hubert Givenchy and the rest of the cast was clothed by the costume queen Edith Head. You will be swept away in the lush brilliance of this film!

Here are some illustrations of a hat featured in the film. The illustration at the top was inspired by the film and the hat below.