A Fabulous Photoshoot: Vintage, tattoo and pinup photography by Alt.Studio!

I'd seen a lot of buzz amongst local bloggers and members of the North West Vintage Business Network about Alt.Studio, so when I was given the opportunity to book a shoot, I jumped at the chance!

Situated in a cosy, private space within Ridelow (formerly the Home Design Store), one of Manchester's oldest established alternative shops in the city centre's cool and quirky Northern Quarter, Alt.Studio specialises in producing fantastic portraits for an alternative clientele. A pampering makeover service is available where a professional artist can work her magic with hairstyling and makeup to create any vintage look you desire, from 1920s vamp, through to 1950s glamour or 60s siren. The owner, Simon Hunt, also has a passion for tattoo photography, and really gets the best from his illustrated subjects with some beautiful, colourful shots of people from all areas of the 'alternative' spectrum.

Mwah!

I chose a cheesecake pinup theme for my shoot, as I really love the old cheeky, colourful pinups of the 40s and 50s - Bettie Page, Elvgren, Vargas... I felt I would be most comfortable with this as it best reflects my personal style and would allow me to show off a range of my self-made dresses and hats! Every Alt.Studio shoot is built around the client's personal style and vision, and Simon is great at helping to bring this out of his models! I'm by no means an old hand when it comes to being photographed, but I have done quite a few professional photoshoots and bits of modelling for my own and my friends' companies, and Simon was one of the best photographers I have ever worked with. His friendly attitude and infectious energy really put me at ease in front of the camera, and he knew exactly how to direct me to get the most effective, flattering and interesting poses.

I loved my hair and makeup by Nikki Armstrong, and will be trying to recreate this hairstyle at home, as soon as I have some tongs so I can get the lovely defined curls!

New tiki dress! Hair flower by MissTiki Designs

Simon managed to shoot me in four outfits in the space of just a couple of hours! I couldn't wait to see the images once we were finished, and left Alt.Studio feeling really pleased and confident.

Vintage family heirloom parasol... birdie straw hat coming soon to my shop!

New Hawaiian dress by me... really proud to be Alt.Studios' facebook cover girl!

I would really recommend the Alt.Studio experience to anyone looking for an empowering, fun day and to take away some beautiful images! The studio can also be booked for couples or small groups, and don't forget to mention that you were referred by Kalandra when you book! Alt.Studio is offering free makeovers and special price image packages alongside some great competitions for a limited time only, so head over to the studio's facebook page (where I am currently the cover photo!) or www.altstudiouk.com to see more of Simon's beautiful work.

My favourite shot... lovely work by Alt.Studio which will be printed and grace my wall when I'm an old woman!

You can also see more delicious Alt.Studio portrait photography on Dolly Cool Clare's blog, Helen's blog, Kitty Wink Vintage and the fabulous Marry Me Ink - they're all really worth a look, the pictures (and the ladies, of course) are gorgeous!

A trip to York, and Vivienne Westwood shoes!

Once Aerospace Boyfriend had gotten over the shock of being thirty, we decided to go on a date to York, a wonderful city full of history and shopping opportunities!

Last time we went, we did the historical stuff - walking the Roman city walls, a tour of the Medieval Minster, viewing the wonky Tudor buildings of The Shambles, and discovering the Viking history of the city, so this time was all about the shopping and food!

Here is the Minster, well, the tiny bit of it that I could fit into the frame of the camera!



We arrived at lunchtime and headed straight for El Piano, a fantastic Spanish/South American vegan cafe where everything is so tasty! I had spicy kofta with turmeric coconut sauce and lentil and rice tabuleh, he had Mushroom and Basil salad with rice and chutney. It took me ages to decide what to have, everything looked so good and I'm not used to being able to eat more than one thing on a menu! Next time, I may pick up a copy of their cookbook from their little shop.



Following a recent eBay fiasco where some shoes I bought were listed as the wrong size and I ended up having to sell them on rather than return them to the unhelpful seller, I was promised a trip to Vivienne Westwood to 'try on' the Lady Dragon shoes to see what size I needed, the plan being to then buy some cheap-ish-ly on eBay. Well, Aerospace Boyfriend decided that he would buy me some there and then, and that instead of a previous season's style, they would be the amazing brand new ones with the cherries on the toe instead of hearts! Squeeeeeee!



Here they are! Available online here!

I also got this cute cowboys and wagons print handkerchief with a polka dot border from the Cath Kidston shop. I wore it today as a headscarf.



We had ice creams on the lawn outside the Minster, mine was vegan chocolate, then we went on a romantic boat trip along the river Ouse. This is a view from the boat, of the York Guildhall and one of the four bridges in the city centre.



Finally, we went for dinner at a fancy Italian restaurant where we sat outside. I had a tomato garlic bread and some spaghetti with grilled vegetables, then we walked back to the car along the riverbank, and got there just as it started pouring with rain!

Unfortunately we then got stuck in a traffic jam for three hours on the way home, but it was still a lovely day.

Here we are enjoying some incredibly sour lemonade:



And me with a big door knocker outside one of the city's famous 'haunted houses'.