Voodoo child

Back in the days when I was a mere pocket-sized person, growing up in a small backwater village in the south of Sweden, I roamed free from early morning until dinnertime with very little adult supervision.

My little pals and I would run wild in the local forest, which proved to be the best playground a child could ever wish for.

We climbed trees, splashed around in the stream, built huts and played elaborate games. 

I didn't have many toys but to be fair the ones that I did have mostly gathered dust indoors, I was far more interested in playing games.

We were pirates, spies and troll hunters.

When I was five a playground was built just outside our house and we all thought it was the bees-knees until we realized that we were surrounded by "playground police".

Annoying adults sticking their oar in every five minutes, directing play and making up stupid rules that we had to abide by.

Needless to say we soon abandoned the spanking new playground and went back our beloved forest, where we were left alone to do as we pleased.

These days I still enjoy playing games, dress-up related ones in particular and sometimes when the "playground police" aren't looking I go for a wee spin, spin, spin on the merry-go-round :)

I bought this floral lace dress from a car boot sale ages ago. 

It was a dreary pale blue colour, so I decided to give it a dye-over & revamp.

I began by removing the inside lining and the zipper.

Then I dyed it twice, first with pink and then with purple.

My inspiration for this colour combo was the heather covered hills of the Scottish highlands.

Because the lining has been removed it is pretty see-though, so I prefer to 

team it with my trusty spanx pants and a leotard.

The necklace is also one of my own creations, made from deconstructed necklaces and bits and bobs that I have picked up on my travels.

The coat I'm wearing was bought in the January sale of 2000.

Mark and I spent NYE 1999 at my sisters in Copenhagen and while we were there I spotted this awesome faux-fur tiger stripe coat in H&M.

I fell head over heels with it but at £80 it way way beyond my budget. 

Then in January we moved to Glasgow and I had an interview for a job at the Sauchiehall street centre; t'was a horrible interview with a snooty biatch. 

On my way out I passed H&M and out of the corner of my eye I spotted a tiger striped sleeve sticking out from a rail, I ran up to it and found the coat in my size for £15, not only that I also found a matching mini skirt for a £5.

I didn't get the job but I did get my amazing "rockstar" coat for a mere £15, magic!

H&M coat, revamped lace dress, 90s lace leotard, 80s boots, self-made necklace, 80s deadstock tights, gloves, mohair hat & wiggy-woo

 Goose update: despite my recent bout of something akin to the black death (or maybe it's just the man flu that has jumped sex), I have been making regular trips up to the park to see how our poorly feathered  friend is getting on. The RSPCA has been in contact with me and have asked me to monitor the bird and get in contact if its condition deteriorates.

Here's a little Hendrix to funk up the start of your week...

Thanks for your lovely 'get well' comments peeps, after spending the majority of the weekend in bed, I'm feeling much better now.
Lot's of love,
Jennie
xXx

Cold hands, adventurous heart

I have no rose tinted tales from the nineties for you today only an outfit...

Vintage 70s suede jacket , 60s dress, 50s booties, 90s lurex jumper, M&S tights, knitted mohair hat, soapstone & macrame earrings, a plethora of bangly things (all thrifted from car boot sales and markets)

We went for a quick stroll around the park earlier and it was VERY cold.

I forgot to bring my gloves, so by the time we got to the park I had what I would describe as "hypothermic hands".

Last time I felt like my hands were going to break clean off was in February last year when I was kneeling on a training platform at the bottom of Wraysbury lake.

The water was three degrees Celsius and my life was flashing in front of my eyes.

Still one of the best experiences I had in 2012.

I'm absolutely hankering to go diving again...hurry up spring!

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

The soundtrack of my life

Back in the autumn of ‘92 something happened that would change my music taste forever.

 Up until then I'd pretty much been a pop chart follower & my record collection played host to some of the most dire music ever made.

One afternoon I was on my way to a local café where a little cluster of my classmates used to hang out after school, when I spotted a new record store.

It looked really groovy from the outside and the scent of burning incense drew me in.

I wasn't going to buy anything but I left with two albums, which were 

'Nirvana – Nevermind' & 'Pearl Jam –Ten'.

I wasn't even into that kind of music then but the owner of the shop was so convinced that I’d fall in love with them that he even told me that I could bring them back for a full refund if I didn't.

I brought them home & listened to them all weekend, then I went back into the shop on the following Monday & shook the dude’s hand.

After that pop was dead to me, I weeded out all the inane crap to make room for proper music.

I was an alternative rock convert, hallelujah ;)

The record store became a regular haunt for me and my mates.

The owner had an uncanny ability to unite people with music that they never thought they'd like; he also had a really infectious love of rock music & an almost encyclopedic knowledge of bands.

It was an exciting time of my life and one that deserved a more kick-ass soundtrack than the ten a penny pop I'd previously favoured and a kick-ass soundtrack is just what I got.

Later that year I bought the first album by 'Rage Against The Machine' and my life was never the same again ;)

The last record that I bought from the store, before I moved away from Sweden in ’93 was ‘The The – Dusk’ which is still one of my favourite albums.

I love all the songs on this album and I think they've kept fresh.

What 90s albums do you have that you can still listen to and enjoy all the way through?

I’ll leave you with another wonderful song by 'The The', enjoy…

Have a fabulous weekend!

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Travelling through threads

I’ve had the black velour jumpsuit that I’m wearing today for over twenty years.

All throughout my teens my mum would let me order a few bits from the mail-order catalogue each season.

What would usually happen is that I would scope out the things that I fancied & then hang on until the sale to get more bang for my buck or kit for my krona as it were.

Invariably the things that I’d chosen ended up in the sale, perhaps cause I would usually favour the more impractical & ostentatious garments.

Whilst my mates took their fashion inspiration from Beverly Hills 90210, I sought my style stimulus in music videos; I wanted to look like the chicks on MTV, hell yeah!

The early 90s saw my wardrobe embrace a holy mishmash of clingy, second skin like leggings, jumpsuits & mini dresses, jewel tone long velvet waistcoats, ridiculously oversized jumpers in a kaleidoscope of colours and a rough and ready camouflage print bomber jacket.

I also bought my first ever pair of DMs and wore them to death.

My favourite shade of lipstick was called ‘Chocolate Kiss’ and my perfume was New West by Aramis. 
I know that some people recoil in horror when faced with photos of their younger self, mainly because of the clothing they were sporting back then but I see these photos as little snapshots of a journey.
Personally I love seeing how someones style has evolved throughout the years and although my own long & winding road has been laced with a fair few fashion disasters, 
all-in-all I'm pretty pleased with where its taken me.
How about you?

Vintage 80s snakeskin print jacket (eBay), 90s velour jumpsuit (Halens), 80s cowboy boots (car boot sale), beaded bib necklace (pressie) & DIYed earrings (made myself)

The words that you can see in the first pic are from a song by one of my all-time favourite bands 'The The'.

You can listen to it here, go on you know you want to ;)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Those were the days

Back in the early 90s I spent a summer working in a very well known holiday resort on Costa Blanca.

An older friend of mine had done a few summers there in the late 80s and had enthralled me with his tales of excitement, adventure and really wild things.

So after I finished college I booked a flight to Alicante and blagged a seat on a package holiday transfer bus to the resort.

Once there I managed to find some very cheap accommodation in a grotty hostel situated in the old town and set about looking for a job.

For two nights solid I was job hunting, going to almost every bar & club in the resort but everywhere was the same story, fully staffed.

I did have a back up plan, which was to go fruit picking in the south of France, but ideally I wanted to stay where the buzz was, I was only eighteen after all.

On my third day there I was sitting at a café near the bullring eating a huge bocadillio and having several ‘kick in the back of the head’ strength coffees when a handsome middle-aged man approached me.

At first I thought he was just some random perv trying to chat me up but he turned out to be a real diamond geezer; after making a few calls to his mates he’d sorted me out with a club propaganda job.

I started sharing an apartment with three of my workmates & although it was bordering on claustrophobic we had a whale of a time that summer.

On a good day we’d borrow some mopeds and head for the cliffs further down the coast, listen to loud cheesy techno music, drink cheap beer and play truth or dare, in which the dare usually involved launching yourself into the sea off a steep cliff.

In the evening we’d head back into town, feast on huge plates of tuna pasta and drink cheap plonk out of cartons.

Some times we had to do special promotions or leafleting on the beach during the day but most days we just worked from 9pm until 2am and after we would join the throng of punters inside and party until sunrise.

The busy season started slowing down in late September and one by one friendly faces sloped off.

By mid October the resort had been transformed into bingo heaven for well-heeled old timers spending the winter abroad. 

I bought a bus ticket to London and endured the most excruciatingly long bus journey I’ve ever taken.

My diamond geezer had offered to buy me a flight ticket but I quite stupidly turned it down cause I didn’t want to feel as if I owed him anything.

I think that I must have really hurt his feelings cause I never heard from him again.

Sadly I have very few photos left from this time of my life cause I “lost” them in a particularly nasty break-up from a jealous boyfriend a few years later but I will always have my memories.

The choon that defined that glorious summer…

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

The Frocktasia Winter Sale

Frocktasia is having a massive winter sale.

All 74 items in store have been reduced.

Plenty of awesome bargains for both vintage lovers and style rebels.

Stunning vintage frocks, tops, jumpers, jackets, bags and footwear.

Handmade unique jewellry and shapeshifter ponchos.

Why not pop over and have a look :)

If you have any questions you can contact me on

frocktasia@yahoo.co.uk 

FROCKTASIA WINTER SALE...

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Blonde is Back

I'm completely bushed  cause I spent the entire day taking pics for yet another store update. 

Loads of glitz and glamour heading for the shop this weekend, yay!

As a one woman show I am my very own real life mannequin & photographer rolled into one,  it may sound all jammy and glammy working for yourself but it can be pretty rough at times it has to be said.

 This is pretty much how my day went:

 Outfit on...snap...snap...snap...outfit off...outfit on...snap...snap...snap...outfit off...outfit on...yawn...snap...snap...snap...outfit off...fall arse over tit into the clothes rail...fix clothes rail with gaffar tape ...make coffee rocket-fuel, still only clad in pants (too much information?! och, this is my little life peeps)...consume rocket-fuel .. buzz upstairs...outfit on...snap...snap...snap....outfit off...outfit on....and so on and on and on and on and on and on until either the camera battery dies or I start spinning out and have to get out of the house immediately!

I try to go for a wander around the park everyday, in the summer when the grass was dry I would just kick back and watch the clouds drift by, now I bring a handful of nuts for the squirrels and kick leaves about...it's nice to connect with nature everyday even if it's only a park in the big shitty.

It's howling  & pishing down outside now, it's very late and I really need to go to bed.

I'll leave you's with an outfit that I snapped just for fun...

90s fuzztastic top, 70s knicker hot-pants, ribbed tights, 90s kick-yo-ass platform boots, Blonde is Back wiggy-woo, Tibetan prayer bangle & Frocktasia necklace.

Tomorrow (well, today but after sleeps) will be a day in front of the compy, editing & writing descriptions...

I can feel my eyeballs itching already.

Nite, nite peeps :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Can I have some more...Tights Please!

Last week I got an e-mail from a lovely lass called Bernadette who works for a company called Tights Please, an on-line specialist retailer of, you guessed it, tights.

In the e-mail I was asked if I'd like to participate in a review feature; they would supply me with a couple of samples and all I had to do was to style them.

After drooling over the veritable feast of hosiery on the site, I decided that I'd be a mug not to jump on Bernadette's offer.

Not only do I get to try out some spanky new tights but I also get to go mad in the the boudoir, styling up a storm, in other words a pretty perfect way to spend an afternoon!

I was sent two fabulous pairs of tights by Red or Dead...

The tights are called Pammy & Peggy. 

Glorious Gussets indeed, they are silky smooth, gorgeously patterned & super comfy to wear.  

I couldn't wait to get styling!

First I amassed a towering pile of clobber that I thought they would look good with and then I got down to business...

Pammy tights teamed with a 90s micro mini dress,  Dear Darkness headdress & Demonia heels.

Pammy tights teamed with vintage 50s sequin top, sequin beret, arm-warmers, hot-pants, Demonia heels & tulle skirt by Max & Co.  

Left: Pammy tights teamed with 90s mesh lace mini dress, hot-pants & Frocktasia necklace
Right: 90 leather shorts by Sisley + same as above.

Pammy tights teamed with 90s deadstock Harris tweed shorts by Jigsaw + same as above.

Peggy tights teamed with 90s Betsey Johnson polka dot dress, Demonia heels & Dear Darkness headdress.

Peggy tights teamed with vintage 50s revamped lace dress + same as above.

Left: Peggy tights teamed with a 90s PVC & zip detail micro mini dress
Right: 90s floral lace dress & hot-pants + same as above.

Left: Peggy tights teamed with a 90s Versace copycat safety pin dress by Bernshaw & 90s mega platform boots.
Rights: 80s mini dress with ribbon embroidery + same as before.

Peggy tights teamed with 90s deadstock Harris tweed shorts by Jigsaw, Demonia heels, Dearest Darkness headdress & eagle/rose print skinny Tee.

Peggy tights teamed with 90s leather shorts by Sisley and a magnificent 70s sequin disco diva jumper + same as above.

I could have gone on and on with styling these but unfortunately my afternoon came to an end.

They definitely look the bees-knees when paired together with hot-pants, cut-offs, shorts, micro dresses or mini skirts and a pair of towering heels, for best effect.

They have more YOWZA than you can shake a stick at, so perfect for the upcoming party season.

If you want a pair of Pammy or Peggy tights yourself, then why not pop over to the Tights Please website, they offer free UK delivery & they've also got some ace Henry Holland tights up for grabs in their sale section a the moment, not to mention a totally awesome array of leggings.

I'd like to thank  Tights Please & especially Bernadette for giving me the opportunity to do this product review/styling feature, it's been fun!

I hope you guys have enjoyed it too :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx

Frockfest & Groovy Panties

Happy weekend :)

As some of you may already know I have a Frocktasia Facebook page which has 82 wonderful likes thus far, each and every new 'like' gives me such a kick...

it's feels a bit like a fabulous compliment or a wolf whistle from a really attractive guy.

So thank you very much if you have already liked the page and made me feel like a very happy sausage ;)

On the Frocktasia Facebook I also have an album of dresses that are available to buy.

 I named that album 'Frockfest' and today I decided to reduce the prices on everything in that album, yay!

Prices now range from £10-£35 (+ £3.95 P&P for within the UK) and there is plenty of variety, so why not go and have a wee look?

This is one of the fab frocks that is up for grabs...

Item: Vintage 70s/80s monochrome arty floral print dress.

Price: £20 + £3.95 P&P for within the UK

Details: Cuffed short sleeves, stand collar, buttoned ruffle front detailing, fully lined skirt, elasticated waist, belt loops & original tie belt.

Labelled: IMAGE collection - Made in Hong Kong

Condition: Excellent

Fabric: Swishy polyester with nylon lining.

Measurements:

Bust: 38"

Waist: 28-36" (elasticated)

Hips: 40"

Length: 45"

Sleeves: 11,5"

Labelled: size 16

Best fit: UK 10/12/14 (depending on desired fit)

If you want to have a closer look at the 'Frockfest' garments I have made a dropbox folder full of pics :)

I'm going to leave you with some groovy panties...

I bagged these bonkers dead-stock nylon panties on my last vintage treasure hunting trip...

I actually had a pair of these already in my vintage undies collection...

They are labelled 'St Michael'... 

I could so see Desiree wearing these as knicker shorts ;)

Whadd'ya think dahlin'...wud ya?

Desiree is totally

Dee-Gorgeous & Dee-Groovy!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Have a cracker of a weekend my beautiful readers, see ya :)

Lot's of love,

Jennie

xXx