Retro Fashion

Retro Find: Vintage Hawaiian Dress

Posted by on Dec 12, 2012 | 0 comments

Sometimes you walk into an op shop and you just know you are going to find something. I popped in to a Hospice store on the way to Scandretts Bay, North of Auckland. It was an op shop like we used to have in Auckland – not overpriced, full of interesting and odd things, and with lovely helpful staff. I had the Kid with me so sadly couldn’t lose myself for hours as I would have liked to, but did manage to have a bit of a rummage.

And the first thing that I found was the only thing I ended up walking out with – this gorgeous vintage Peggy Wood Hawaiian dress. And the best bit is that I can squeeze into it right now! I hope with another slow 6 months of baby weight loss, it’ll look amazing. It looks made for a short person like me. The other best bit was the price – $8!

It is made from cotton, with what I think is a floral batik pattern printed on it. It has an elastic side gusset and a fab sarong skirt. Just lovely.

Peggy Wood, Honolulu, Hawaiian Dress

The gorgeous neckline, showing the batik pattern

Looks like the sarong skirt is a signature for Peggy Wood – love this one found on Etsy

Friday Frocks: Bella Vintage’s Gorgeous Dresses

Posted by on Nov 29, 2012 | 0 comments

Bella Vintage has done it again! She has some beautiful dresses in just in time for the party season, and they aren’t copies they are the real deal.

The Red Dress

Check out this perfect red dress with the full skirt – and it is in a wearable size 12. I’ve asked Sarah to let us know about the fabric so I’ll update this post later. EDIT: it’s chiffon! Bust: 39″, waist 28″ with full hips. You’d be able to eat extra canapes without anyone noticing your growing stomach!

The Red Dress $97

I love this teal shirtwaister, which is a smaller size 8, with it’s gorgeous black trim. It’s on hold, but you could get lucky being the back-up buyer.

Teal shirtdress: $65

She has some gorgeous stock coming up this summer, so make sure you check out her shop, but not this morning as it is down for maintenance!

Retro Cateye Sunglasses – only $10!

Posted by on Nov 5, 2012 | 0 comments

That 1950s look!

Photo via Hairstyle Twist.

Do you want to get that retro 1950s look but don’t want to invest heavily? These catseye sunglasses are in the latest Warehouse mailer and are only $9.99. I don’t imagine they will be very good quality, but I’ll pop along this week and check them out and report back. For that price, they could be a fun way to get a fresh look for summer. They don’t look too pointy as well so should suit a variety of face shapes.

Cateye glasses from the Warehouse: $9.99

They aren’t on the Warehouse online store site, so you’ll need to stop at the brick and mortar store to pick up a pair (they have wedges on sale at the moment as well, so you could pick up a cheapy pair of shoes too while you’re there!).

If you are after a higher quality pair of sunglasses, check out my post here for designer cateye sunglasses.

Vintage-Inspired Sunglasses: Cat-Eye Glasses

Posted by on Oct 1, 2012 | 0 comments

Retro oversized sunglasses hide many sins, but vintage-inspired cat-eye sunglasses give you a cool retro look. My grandmother always wore them, I’ll have to dig out a photo of her as she looked great! The queen of the retro look, Dita von Teese has been seen wandering around in a red pair of cat-eyes so they must be cool, right? See her here.

Marilyn in her cat-eye glasses

Ex-Gucci designer Tom Ford does a very authentic pair that comes in black, white and tortoiseshell. Get the white ones and you’d soon be looking like a Pink Lady! Not surprisingly they are an ‘investment piece’ as quite costly at $346.

Click here to check them out.

Tom Ford’s ‘Nikita’ cat-eye sunglasses $346

Some of the modern versions are a bit bigger and a bit less pointy than the originals but this makes them a softer look. These 1950s-inspired D&G sunglasses come in a big range of colours. This is the ‘Havana’ but they come in black, red, turquoise, yellow, spotted emerald, spotted violet, and spotted grey. They come with a big D&G case and a lens kit.

Click here to check them out.

D&G 1950s-inspired sunglasses: $143

Vintage Hawaiian Dress: Alfred Shaheen – size 12-14!

Posted by on Sep 28, 2012 | 0 comments

I love vintage Hawaiian dresses, and with summer hopefully coming soon I dangerously ventured onto eBay. And what did I find but a gorgeous from the 1950s or 60s – and in a hard-to-find larger size (not that large, but bigger than usual tiny vintage sizes). I am very very tempted. It is gorgeous, and even has the date, 1957, on the selvage of the fabric

Alfred Shaheen Hawaiian sundress: bidding starts at US$99

The listing says the dress is in very good condition – with the print still vibrant . It is about a NZ size 12-14 (it says 10-12 but that is American sizing). The actual measurements are included in the listing,

Click here to see more about this fab dress. Bids start at US$99, and postage to NZ is $13.75. Tempted?

Close up of the fabulous Alfred Shaheen fabric

’1957 by Alfred Shaheen’

Max Fashion’s New Ad

Posted by on Sep 21, 2012 | 0 comments

Max has a new ad out and it has a real vintage vibe to it. It starts with a pretty grey lace 1960s-inspired dress, has the whole big sunglasses and head-scarf Audrey look, has a sexy secretary and then a fun 60s colourblock dress. Lots of cute looks if you are looking for something new but vintage-inspired.