Grace & Manners

New Year's Eve

I hope you are all spending New Year's Eve in a happy place - me, I will pass it right here in my little sanctuary of a flat, dreaming, pondering, hoping... laying to rest the old and welcoming the new.

Happy New Year!

Vogue Pattern Book

In a weak moment, I did a bit of pre-Christmas browsing on etsy (very dangerous in terms of sticking to my Christmas gift budget...) and snapped up two vintage Vogue Pattern Books from For The Bettys.

I love everything about vintage women's magazines: from the slightly musty smell, to the advertisments, model's poses and, of course, the fashion. Below are a few of my favourite pages from the October/November 1959 isssue.

Beautiful jacket, I particularly like the collar - perfect frame for the multi-strand pearl necklace.

I adore this chic jersey dress, so stylish! It looks comfortable, elegant and could easily be adapted from day wear to a night out. This goes straight onto my (ever growing) sewing list.

My favourite, collar bone grazing neckline style, ending in a plunging low back (unfortunately unseen).

It's always nice to find sketches of different styles or silhouettes in vintage magazines as they are great for inspiration and reference purposes.

Lip Service

While I wouldn't say that I am high-maintenance when it comes to my beauty regime (well, not all the time anyways...), I won't deny that I love make-up and its transformative powers. I am a believer in the Dita von Teese approach to beauty in that I like the idea of creating that, which you are not born with (read her interview in The Observer Magazine, July 8 2007, if you can find it).

While I don't have half of Ms Teese's glamour or dedication to detail, I have certainly found ways to make make-up work for me and none more so than lipstick. So here is a round-up of my favourites.

Top row, left to right:

MAC Amplified in So Scarlet - MAC lipsticks are really great and their range of colours and different textures (this one has limp plumping qualities) are superb. The colour is a beautiful dark wine, perfect for dramatic 1920's looks. It was a limited edition colour tough, so you might need to hunt it down on ebay.
MAC Cremesheen in Brave Red - A bright red with yellow untertones. The creamy texture means that the staying power is somewhat limited but with proper application this could easily stand up to a few drinks and nibbles.
MAC Amplified in Power House - This brigh coral-red was my first introduction to MAC and red lipstick but has sadly been discontinued. It tends to "bleed" a bit, so use a good lip pencil.
MAC Matte in Ruby Woo - If you are into Vintage make-up than this lipstick is probably somewhere in your make-up stash. It is a perfect matte coral red and has fantastic staying power. If I do my usual routine of layering and blotting it will last the whole day with little to no re-application. A word of warning to the novice lipstick user: since this is a matte texture, make sure to condition your lips before hand since dry and flacky red lips are not a good look!
Lipstick Queen in Medieval - This is my current lipstick obsession. I'd sleep with this on, that's how lovely it feels on the lips! Despite the dark colour of the tube it only has a hint of pigments which gives you a beautiful, just-bitten look. Lipstick Queen has a gorgeous range of colours in two textures - Saint, which is sheer and Sinner, which is more opaque and has higher pigmentation. Go have a look on the website now!
Lancôme L'Absolu Rouge in 132 - An absolu(te) classic that sits nicely on the lips, is moisturising and smells just the way I remember it from the days when I used to "borrow" make-up from my Mom. Nostalgia in a tube.

Middle:

Maybelline SuperStay 24 Color in Red Passion - I have always been rather sceptic about buying make-up that is over-advertised but this one really lives up to the hype and the promise. It does just what it says on the tin: it stays and stays and stays! Even oily food will hardly impact on its hold. Be sure to have a good make-up remover at hand when you are ready to take it off! I only wish they did this in matte.

Bottom row, left to right:

Lipstick Queen in Saint Rose - Moving away from reds, say hello to the perfect rosy nude shade in the loveliest texture. If you are still wary of lipstick this one might convert you!
Givenchy Rouge Interdit in Beige Champagne - Love the packaging of this one, very chic. It's a subtle pink-ish beige that gives just the right hint of soft, slightly glossy colour.

Be kind to your lips, give them some lipstick!

Are you Grateful?

I read an absolutely heartbreaking, touching and honest post on one of my favourite blogs this morning which forcefully reminded me, yet again, how much I have to be grateful for, every single day. And how it is possible to show grace and courage even in the face of great adversity. I am a glass-half-empty kind of person and sometimes I can get lost in my bubble of gloom and doom and self-pity. It is good to have one's life put into perspective from time to time.

So, be grateful!

Laced with History

 
Today, my grandmother had to move to a nursing home. How to pack decades of memories into a few cardboard boxes, how to decide what to take and what to leave, how to sift through one's own accumulated material history, how to help? Let's just say it was an emotional day for all of our family...

I feel extremely blessed to have grown up in a multi-generational home, to have had the opportunity of being close to my grandparents throughout my childhood and teens. It is such a privilege. And I find comfort in the thought that she didn't not have to move far, just around the corner to be precise, and that she still retains a great measure of her independence.

 
Like my grandmother, I tend towards the occasional ,inexplicable, sentimental attachment to objects and "things". That's why I felt especially touched when she gave me the beautiful, handcrafted lace she had kept from her mother and parents-in-law, all lovingly stored in flower-printed cardboard boxes. Trims, ribbons, collars, little, tiny bibs...Treasures indeed!

Out of the Closet

 
These wardrobes (or rather walk-in closet!) is amazing. Dark, slightly gothic, elegant - I love it!

I am working on optimising my clothing storage space and during the rumage through my collection of interior books, Elle Decoration issues and online magazines, I came across this beauty. Not that I have or are ever likely to have a walk-in closet...but hey, a girl can dream... This one goes in the inspiration file, to be sure!

Image from lonnymag.com

Master Class

 
This editorial is so spectacular - I can't even beginn to describe how much I love it. The fashion, the colours (or lack thereof), the setting, the lighting, the models, the poses...

 
 
Little side note to Miss V: The dress on the right is what I would wear to the registry office if ever I marry.

 
 
 
All pictures scanned from the September issue of British Vogue

A La Mode

 
Although I am not a huge fan of Kate Moss, I instantly fell in love with her in this editorial shot by Mario Testino from the August edition of British Vogue. I think she has never looked more beautiful or elegant! A lot of this is due to the impeccable styling and the fashion in this shoot is simply sublime - every single piece has gone unto my wishlist. Not that I could afford any of the clothes but, hey, a girl can dream! And that's what a good editorial should do - take you to places you will never go.

 
I have a love affair with blouses at the moment and I love the dropped yoke and the russet colour of this version by Miu Miu.

 
 
Love this ensemble by Luis Vuitton with it's patent leather collar and cuffs and whimsical print design.

 
Polka Dot beret - enough said!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Another blouse crush - this simply silk version with the stand-out sleeve design is amazing.

 All pictures scanned from British Vogue 08/11

Paradise Found

My last days in Paradise and it could not have been more perfect:

My favourite kind of weather with temperatures in the low to mid-twenties, a light breeze, a scattering of clouds in the sky...A day spent roaming the house and grounds of Blickling Hall...if ever I am so lucky as to marry, it would have to be here, it is so beautiful and peaceful...Browsing through the second hand bookstore and picking up some new treasures...tea and cake...sitting on a bench under a grand old oak tree soaking up the English country side...

Oh, a kingdom for being able to stay...

Home Is Where The Heart Is

If the old saying is true then my home is England - there is no place where I feel more at peace, freer or myself. Here, everything falls into place, every troubling thought becomes less evil; England is my cure.

The day before I came away, I was so tense with anger and frustration I thought I might explode. But the moment I stepped unto English soil, the load was lifted (rendered even more extraordinary by the fact that I was landing in the least relaxing place possible - Heathrow Airport!).

So, my first day home brought me monastic ruins, jacket potato with baked beans, a moated castle, walled gardens, spectacular views, proper English tea and something priceless which I haven't felt in a long time - complete and utter happiness!