'40s Night at Gwdihw, Cardiff

This coming Friday, a chance to put on one of my forties' frocks! I can't wait.

(Psst, for those of you that aren't Welsh, that's not a typo in my title - it's pronounced 'goody-who')

Gwdihw are on Facebook if you want more details.

Sexy Thermals?

It's been bitterly cold these past few days in Wales, and even though I've been layering up with slips, cardigans and fleece insoles in my boots I've still been chilled. I'm going to have to invest in thermals, and I was prepared to embrace granny-chic to keep warm, but then I noticed that M&S have some thermals that look... well, sexy!

Follow this link to go their website for more thermal choices.

Poirot Fashion Special: Episode 2, "Murder in the Mews"

Ta-da! Another focus on the amazing fashion of the David Suchet Poirot series. This time we're in London for 'Murder in the Mews'. I didn't know before reading the accompanying Poirot magazine that Mews were built as stables/garages with servants quarters above. (I can hear you asking, "Poirot magazine?" - oh yes, there is such a thing!)

The episode is set around Bonfire Night, which as Hastings points out, would be ideal for shooting someone as you wouldn't hear the shot above the sound of the fireworks. Indeed, a body turns up the next day - a Miss Allen, found by her flatmate Miss Plenderleith.

The funny thing about the way this episode is filmed is that we never really get to find out much about the victim - there are no 'flashbacks', so all we see of her is her corpse on the floor, and as such we can't identify with her or feel that bothered that she's dead! Ah well, a death takes second interest after the fashion in Poirot anyhow.

First up in the fashion parade is the prickly Miss Plenderleith (click on photos for larger images). Obviously a lady of means, judging by her wardrobe - her photography must pay.

There's something a little '80s about the look that I can't quite put my finger on. Is it the hair? Make-up? Any other thoughts?? Something not quite right. But Miss Plenderleith redeems herself in the next outfit, a fabulous trouser set with gorgeous technicolour floral pattern. (please do click on the bottom pic in particular for a better look at it, it was hard trying to get a full length shot).

Miss Plenderleith also has some rather lovely hats, I like the soft velvet one in the first picture, think this is more flattering than the second one.

And then some Sportswear - to the Golf Course! I could see the Vintage Baroness wearing something like this! I love the way the socks match perfectly.

What's interesting about the shoes is that Poirot wears the exact same style later in the episode, except in black. I don't know if some shoes were truly unisex back then or if the costume department only had enough budget to get one style made?

Now on to Miss Lemon. Notice in this first picture that she's giving that fabulous chocolate and cream frock another outing, we saw that in the first episode. She's well paid in her position as Poirot's secretary but not as well-to-do as most of the clients are.

I wish we could see more of this outfit - I think it's a dress not separates. She looks chic, respectable and efficient in this.

A different dress here again, with a great collar and cuff detail. So far we've seen her in dark, earthy colours - a dark red, chocolate, black, and now a deep forest green colour. She likes feminine details (polkadots, buttons, bows etc.) but no evidence yet of a taste for florals or candy colours - it's very evident that this is a professional, working wardrobe.

Miss Lemon wins hands down again for her impeccable taste.

There is some talk of fashion in this episode - Poirot faces an ongoing battle with the local laundry which fails to starch his collars sufficiently, and Hastings suggests he purchase shirts with a modern, turned-down collar.

Finally, a few humorous wardrobe moments - a gentleman's robe that I took a dislike to, and a shot of an extra wearing the most peculiarly fur-trimmed coat (have a look - the fur goes from the wrist to the elbow! It's like she's got Ugg boots on her arms!).

Traditional Puddings and the Love Vintage Fair

I really enjoy attempting classic recipes from old cookbooks. There are certain desserts that you have to be able to say you've made, even if it was just the once. This week I made Apple Charlotte, after purchasing a pudding basin at Love Vintage, a vintage homeware fair that was held in Wenvoe. They don't have a website but are on Facebook. There were some clothes and accessories as well as homewares, and I really enjoyed having a thorough browse, followed by tea and homemade cakes served on vintage crockery. What better way to spend an afternoon?

The Apple Charlotte itself is just bread with an apple puree centre, but you have to then put a plate on it and weigh it down in the oven - I used a brick covered in tin foil. It didn't work quite as well as it should have as the plate wasn't quite small enough, so while the Charlotte did stand when turned out, it then collapsed within a short time! Hence no photo to show you. Tasted fantastic though - worth the effort.

I tried a Summer Pudding a few months back (put in the fridge rather than bake) and have to say it was superb! My own personal touch was to add Elderflower Cordial to the fruit rather than Cassis. It adds a wonderful floral aroma.

My top tip for any bread-based pudding, such as bread and butter pudding, Summer Pudding, or Apple Charlotte, is to use Milk Roll instead of ordinary bread. It has such a light consistency, and is a way of getting extra calcium into you as well!

At the fair there were a few items that took my eye, but other than the pudding basin my only other purchase was a 1950's Good Housekeeping book filled with tips on creating the perfect home!

If this 1950's house robe had fitted, I would have been taking it home. How glamorous would it be to swan around the house all day in this?

And this photo album cover was adorable, but needed new pages inserted and I wasn't sure I could face the effort.

I hope they will be holding another fair in December - Christmas shopping anyone?

Officially Lovely

I've only been blogging since February, and that's my excuse for being a bit slow at understanding the whole blogging universe. It took me months to get a banner, even longer to work out how to enable comments, and being able to 'follow' other blogs was a mission in itself!

Therefore, not being au fait with blogland meant that I have completely overlooked an award! Yes, an award! From sweet Wendy over at The Butterfly Balcony, who awarded me The One Lovely Blog Award. Silly me, I thought she just meant my blog was lovely and it was a metaphorical award, so I'm a little late in posting about this and a bit red-faced too!

I'm thrilled anyway - I am so pleased that I have 35 followers who don't mind me prattling on about vintage tea-cups or what-not, and I'm sure my Beloved appreciates no end that I don't have to tell him all that stuff. If only I could get him blogging about guitars...

So, in accepting the award there are some rules, as it's a pass-it-along affair.

1. Accept the award. Post it on your blog along with the name of the person who awarded it along with a link to their blog.
2. Pay it forward to 15 other bloggers that you have recently discovered.
3. Contact those bloggers and let them know they've been chosen.

Well I'm just picking a few of my favourites, I can't find 15 people that don't already have the award for starters!

Lolita Haze - she loves vintage, she loves burlesque. My kind of gal!
Snoodlebug - talks about practical things as well as fun things, like thermal underwear. Someone has to mention it!
Brittany - has curves and isn't afraid to use them...

Thank you again Wendy for my award!

Stay tuned this week for the next edition of the Poirot Fashion Special!

Red Bow Cardigan

I know that the red bow cardigan Miss Lemon was sporting in the first episode of Poirot generated a bit of a cardi-crush in myself and a few others, so I had to post a picture of this cardigan I came across in Asda yesterday. It's only £16 too!

Revlon Remakes 1952 Advert

If you haven't heard about this yet, where have you been?

Revlon have nostalgically relaunched their "Fire and Ice" lip and nail colour that originally made its first outing in 1952 in a glossy advert featuring darling of Dior model Dorian Leigh. This time the advert features Jessica Biel, with a dress a tad sparklier, a mouth poutier, and a wrap more sumptuous.

I'm not sold on the advert remake, but I think the packaging of the products looks rather lovely and I shall be having a closer inspection in the make-up aisle at the soonest available opportunity. Revlon prices are reasonable too - stocking fillers?

Have a look on the Revlon website here.

Picture above courtesy of Tom and Lorenzo, read their article on it here.

Bye Bye Burlesque

I think it's time I admitted that I've hung up my tassels for good. It's been over a year since I last performed, and while I occasionally miss it, I feel like I've moved on from the whole scene. The two years that I performed were the wildest, most exhilarating of my life, and as well as making some wonderful friends I found that my stage persona helped me learn to love the skin I'm in.

So readers, this blog from now on will just be about my obsession with vintage, afternoon tea and housewifely affairs. If I ever start performing again (mid-life crisis perhaps?) then I will probably set up a separate blog, as I've noticed that while in the UK burlesque and vintage often go hand in hand, it's not like that everywhere ,and I don't want to put anyone off from reading about Poirot by making them worry I'm suddenly going to post something titillating!

Those of a nervous disposition avert your eyes now - I'm posting a few pictures of my performances for old time's sake, and then I'll revert back to cakes and dresses in my next post and promise never to mention tassels again!

Anyway, I still have dreams about performing burlesque that are pretty spectacular and will keep me happy in the years to come (me and Dita doing a double act!!). Oh, and I have that festive tassel and fascinator custom-made set that I never did wear... my Beloved's luck is in this Christmas!

Outfit Post: Classic '50s Shirtwaister

Dress: vintage shop in Cardiff; Belt: Zara; Wrangler suede boots: car boot sale bargain, £10, and the woman had only worn them once!

Yesterday I wore one of my favourite vintage dresses - a simple, black 1950's shirtwaister. When I tried it on in the shop it was uncomfortably tight, but determined that it should be mine I took it home and did a bit of sewing on it. After removing some darts in the back and a pleat in the skirt, it fits, ta-da! As a person who has been known to staple or sellotape hems in the past rather than attempt to sew them, I'm quite proud of this achievement! I did have the encouragement of my friend's super-cute pistachio coloured mini sewing machine from John Lewis. It was perfectly adequate for stitching the light cotton of the dress, but as it was mini I did get into a bit of trouble with the sheer volume of fabric in the skirt, so it's not ideal for vintage sewing!