Showing posts with label hats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hats. Show all posts

Monday, 21 May 2012

Haworth 1940s Weekend 2012

I spent this weekend walking up and down very steep cobbled hills in the lovely Yorkshire village of Haworth, which was holding its annual 1940s weekend. The whole village is decked out in Union Jack bunting and sandbags, the residents decorate the outside of their homes and the charity shops bring out all the vintage treasures they have been stockpiling! Vintage cars, military vehicles and wartime reconstructions lined the streets providing plenty for us to look at.


I had organised a trip over for several ladies on the Saturday, and although they all enjoyed it and found some great vintage buys, it was very stressful. The crowds were enormous, it was like a city shopping street on Christmas eve, except worse because nobody was in a rush to be anywhere. My sister also had her daughter in a pram, and found it very difficult to get around. I didn't get a chance to take any pictures that day, because if I had stopped to extract the camera from my bag I would have been knocked over, and the scrums in the vintage shops were shocking, there were elbows and snatching hands everywhere!



Today (Sunday) was a far more leisurely affair, the village was still busy but the crowd seemed more courteous and far less jam-packed. I risked taking the dog with me, and despite an incident with an unfriendly Jack Russell and my poor Scamp getting exhausted from walking up and down hills (he is fifteen, after all) we had a good day, he didn't get stepped on by anybody and enjoyed a picnic in the park with us.


Here is what I wore today, my new jumper knitted by my mum from a 1940s pattern. You can buy this pattern from Bex at Subversive Lesbian Anarchic Femme, available here in her etsy shop, although my mum sized it up, made the sleeves in the rib rather than cherry motif as the cherries took forever to knit, and omitted the collar.


Here's another pic of the outfit, with some chaps dressed as members of the Home Guard. Why am I doing that with my face, you ask? Well, the guy on the left of the picture is squeezing my bottom. That's why. How rude!






This duo were playing on the bandstand in the park, she sang a lovely rendition of La Vie en Rose.


Now, onto the vintage purchases! There was so much to choose from. Haworth has two gorgeous permanent vintage shops, loaded with *actual* quality vintage and antique clothing and accessories, not the 80s tat that shops in the city pretend is vintage. There was also a vintage fair in the church hall, and several curio and charity shops in the village which were loaded with lovely items.

 
Lovely teal mini suitcase!

I have been looking for a small suitcase or train case for ages, to store bits and bobs in at home and for when I go away for a few days or to stay at my boyfriend's at Christmas. This one is in great condition and such a pretty colour!




The lining looks good too! Inside is a pair of fully fashioned stockings I got in one of the charity shops. They are Aristoc Harmony which are quite late (I'm guessing 60s?) but were apparently some of the best ones made prior to the hosiery industry's takeover by ghastly crepey brown tights in the 70s.

1930s Uranium glass dish and spoon from the hospice shop
Another piece for my uranium glass collection!


1950s folding coolie sun hat! This is a flat shape with a popper so it can be easily packed in a holiday bag, made from some sort of straw or string, which folds into a cute cone-shaped sun bonnet.


Babycham deer!
A Babycham plastic fawn! I have eight Babycham glasses and collect fawns too, so he fits in with two collections. This is about 6" high and cost just a few pounds due to the damage on his ear. I saw one of the 4" ones in worse condition priced at £35 in Manchester the other week.

WWII Navy Sweetheart Pin
WWII Navy sweetheart pin. This is about an inch high in total. It is pretty grubby but is made from enamelled silver, it just needs a good clean!


On the way home we were behind this tiny old car! The right wheel was rather wobbly, the window flapped open whenever they turned a corner and it could only manage 20mph due to the hills.

Here is the bad part about this weekend...


Arghhhh horrendous sunburn! It's just on my right forearm and there is a touch of it on the back of my neck, this happened during the ten minutes of bright sunshine we got during the day - time to break out te factor 50 sunscreen for every day, I think. So sore and itchy!

Thursday, 23 February 2012

Kalandra Jane Designs Magazine Feature!

A couple of weeks ago I took some of my hats along to collaborate on a fashion photoshoot for Chimp Magazine, Manchester's leading arts, fashion, gigs and culture guide. I got my copies in the post today, and we have made the front cover (and the front page of their website)!

More great news, the photos have been so well received that the editors have decided to spread the shoot over two issues - double the magazine exposure, and two separate seven-page spreads of beautiful Harajuku-inspired fashion deliciousness featuring my hats! I'm so proud to have my work featured in the magazine, alongside some wonderfully talented people who worked on the shoot.

Here are the pictures from this issue! There are loads more to come. All hats by Kalandra Jane Designs, and if you're not a facebook fan yet please follow me here!








Photo shoot for Chimp Magazine www.chimpmagazine.co.uk
Photographer – Shirlaine Forrest www.shirlainephotos.co.uk
Hair and Make Up Artists - Clare Ardern www.harryjon.com
Jennifer Perry www.jenniferperrymakeupartistry.com
Lauren Coombes www.cheshiremakeup.com
Models – Amy Gee, Olivia Stappleton and Tom Walker at Boss Model Management www.bossmodelmanagement.co.uk
Clothing - Tokyo Royale www.harajukustyle.co.uk
Handbags - Helen Rochfort www.helenrochfort.com
Millinery – Kalandra Jane www.kalandrajanedesigns.com
Accessories – Extreme Largeness www.extremelargeness.com
Photographers Assistant – Danny Thornley
Shot on location with thanks to Phil Thornley, Sophie Mullan, Amanda, Fry, Frank and Paul.

Chimp Magazine is available at WH Smith and all good Mancunian newsagents!

Tuesday, 18 October 2011

100 followers giveaway!

As promised, I'm hosting a giveaway to celebrate reaching 100 followers - I'm now on 102 actually!

Here it is! I'm going to give away one of my gorgeous Kalandra Jane Designs leopard satin fascinators! The winner will be able to choose from black or red trim on the hat, and I will post worldwide.


To enter, you need to be a follower of the blog and leave a comment below. For additional entries, post about this on your own blog, mention it on facebook or twitter and leave me a separate comment with a link to it (that way we all get to cross-promote!)

Good luck everyone! I'll announce the winner in two weeks' time, on the first of November.

Saturday, 23 July 2011

Holiday Sale!

I'm heading to Rebellion Punk Festival on the 4th of August, and need some extra funds. This is the only holiday we ever take, so support us on our trip to smelly old Blackpool by buying one of my glorious designs with 15% off! Sale starts at 6.30pm BST tonight.

Kalandra Jane Designs eBay Shop Here! All these beauties and many more are in the sale. You can also 'like' my business page on facebook!





Tuesday, 26 October 2010

The Bizarre Ball!

On Saturday, Aerospace Boyfriend and I and lots of our friends went to the first Manchester Bizarre Winter Ball, a big 'alternative' event run by Bizarre Magazine. There was burlesque performance by the fabulous Lola Pops, compereing by the wickedly funny Desmond O'Connor and onstage grotesqueries from The Circus of Horrors.

Lola Pops!


There have been a few complaints that the ball did not measure up to the quality of the London event, but all in all I had a good time and have high hopes that future incarnations of the ball will be even better, as it was great to see an event like this being put on outside of the capital. The bands that were on were fairly dire, but I was pleasantly surprised that the music played by the DJs between and after bands was a good mix with no obnoxious metal, plenty of danceable stuff that the crowd enjoyed ranging from old punk, the B52s and Blondie to Lady Gaga and camp classics.

The Circus of Horrors


I was also really proud to see several of my hats being worn at the ball, so thank you to all my customers! If you fancy a hat for your next event, take a look at my eBay shop, my Facebook business page or drop me a line for custom orders!

Here is what I wore, with my lovely friend Steff. The outfit is tailored latex, and I made it myself, as well as Steff's gloves and hat!



Our Friends Chris and Katie - Mad Hatter hat by me!


Our friend Kitten - Latex hat by me!


Group shot!

Tuesday, 23 February 2010

Beautiful things!

A bit of shameless self-promotion here. I've got back rent and bills to pay, thus necessitating a sale in my eBay shop to raise funds quickly. The faster you all buy my creations, the faster I can pay off my personal debts, then invest in a fabulous new website and bring out glorious new designs! There is 15% off almost every item.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Kalandra-Jane-Burlesque-and-Retro

So, do have a look. Here are just a few of the things on sale:







http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Kalandra-Jane-Burlesque-and-Retro

(Sailor Photo by Wicked Heart Photography, Modelled by Anna Fur Laxis and Betty D'Light, Corstery by Boom! Boom! Baby! / Cupcakes Photo by LadyCake Photography, Modelled by Hollie Swain, now signed to Boss Models.)