Absolutely Fabulous

On Saturday night Mark and I went to celebrate Sue's big birthday at The Bull in Highgate.

We've only known Sue and Mark (of Gorgeous Jewellery) for a few months, so we felt very honored when they invited us to attend this special occasion. Leslie and Aiden were there too. It was really great to meet so many of  Sue and Mark's lovely friends and family.

 Frocktasia effortlessly blending immaculate ladylike with common as muck. Sod the champers, this old girl prefers pints of bitter ;)

The party was fabulous, Sue's son and Mark delivered brilliant speeches, Sue treated us all to an awesome poetry reading, they'd very generously made it a free bar all evening and there was gorgeous finger food, sweets and cakes for all to eat. A special playlist with all Sue's favourite tunes had been made up and after a few brilliant ales from the pub's very own micro brewery I was hitting the floor like my name was Dancing Queen.

I bagged the dress that I was wearing from eBay the other week, it's labelled 'Global' and I think it's probably from the 50s. This is a perfect frock for dancing in, so much lovely swishtastic fabric!

We had such a brilliant time and I feel so incredibly blessed to have met such wonderful people as Sue and Mark, they ROCK!

On Sunday morning, I had promised Leslie that we would be at Talacre Road by eight at the latest to help set up. At half seven the alarm went and I waded through a gloopy mist of dancing pink elephants to the bathroom, steeped my bedraggled body in a bath, applied a generous dollop of slap onto my festering features and proceed downstairs to peel Mark off the kitchen sofa. Neither of us could face the bus journey so a taxi was ordered and we arrived just in time to put up the 100 meters of bunting that Leslie had spent days making.

It took me a good few hours and a hair of the dog to get back to some semblance of normality.

Thankfully Leslie and I were stall neighbours and that was not only a joy but a blessing too cause all the things that I'd completely forgotten about, brilliant Leslie had remembered, like rain covers for instance.

I also got to borrow her deluxe rail again, what a star this fabulous woman is...

Friend of the Year? You bet! 

Mark had to shoot off at lunchtime to collect Barbara a friend from Berlin who was stopping with us for one night before heading on to Wales.

There were loads of fun goings on at the Carnival all day :)

No Dandy post is complete without mentioning my fabulous fellow traders, as always they rocked my socks off and filled even my hungover riddled mind with awe :)

I fell in love with London's History Recycled, the brainchild of the super talented Amelia Parker. She makes stunning and unique pieces of jewellery from fragments of clay pipe stems collected along the banks of the River Thames. How awesome is that!

Lionheart Stationers specialize in hand illustrated and bespoke stationary but also design beautiful handmade clothes. You can peruse their creative wares in their well stocked etsy shop. 

 Full Stop Shirts is a brilliant concept T-shirt company that create unique Tees designed to be a reflection of the wearer. Their 'Me-shirt' comes printed with a list of the wearers favourite things and can be ordered from their awesome website.

 I was chuffed to bits to be trading next to lovely Claire of Bright River and her fab fella. Not only was Claire selling her wonderful original photographs and art prints but she had also brought along a rail full of wearable goodies too, I was eyeing up a fabulous Bavarian style frock on her rail.

 Vicky of Dolly Plops was working flat out all day putting her face-painting and henna tattooing skills to good use.

DBUN Designs sell fabulous greetings cards and smartphone covers and behind this small company lies a very inspiring story.

We were blessed with some awesomely sharp looking carnival revelers too. Just check out this stunning chick...

Sporran handbag, simply ingenious!

We'd had a few light showers but in the afternoon the sun decided to make an appearance and there was much rejoicing. The rain covers could come off, the umbrellas put away and exchanged for sunnies.

With the sun came Jo who was wearing the fabulous frock that she picked up from the Frocktasia stockroom when she visited last week. Here she is with our friend Barbara from Berlin.  

I hope that Jo will be able to visit once more before she heads back to the US, we had such a lovely time hanging out the other day and I've still so much to show her ;)

 Some close-ups of Leslie's stall, featuring her awesome handmade scatter cushions that you can buy from her etsy shop and her brilliant vintage button bracelets...

Whilst we were all basking in the late afternoon sunshine these two super stylin' chickadees rocked up at my stall and bought a Frocktasia necklace each. Needless to say I was beyond thrilled, I mean come on, how awesome are these girls :)

Despite the rain throwing a wee spanner in the works early on in the day, I had a fantastic time at The Dandy pop-up and loved the fabulous community and carnival vibe. Once the sun peeped through the clouds everything was just perfect. The numbers swelled and people were eating, drinking, laughing, chatting, shopping, bopping and just having a whale of a time, it was brilliant! 

Yes, that's me having hair of the dog number two ;)

Mark and Barbara helped pack all my gear up and very kindly brought it all home and I stuck around to help take down all the Dandy decorations including the 100 meters of bunting.

I got home to a bowl of pasta, that I scoffed in five minutes flat and after a little catch up with Barbara it was straight off to bed for some much needed regenerative sleep.

I had an absolutely fabulous weekend, hope yours was just as good ;)

Loads of love,

Jennie

xXx

Sunshine on a rainy day

It's been a little while since my last blog offering but as the saying goes time flies when you're having fun.

Here I am basking in today's five minutes of sunshine :)

 As I was desperately trying to find something to pair this maxi skirt with this morning the doorbell rang and outside waited my ever smiling postie with a wee parcel from Sweden.

My beloved mother must have known that I was in dire need of funky summer tops cause the parcel contained not one but two of these crochet beauties.

Vintage 70s maxi skirt (eBay), handmade top (from my lovely mum), Boho belt,  retro sunnies & necklace (car booty), Hush Puppies sandals (chazza) and Frocktasia handmade bag.

Last Friday my beautiful friend Zandra came over from Sweden to stay for a few days. We went to school together in the mid to late 80s and remained pen-pals for a number of years after I moved to another town when we were in our teens. In the mid 90s I moved to the UK and lost contact with a lot of my old pals including Zandra but thankfully we found each other again through Facebook.

 This was the outcome of our attempt to do a 'Past & Present', I'd had a gin or two by then, so I couldn't remember which side I had to go on ;)...

I always admired Zandra's creative & individual style when we were kids. When the majority were jumping on the Adidas tracksuit bandwagon she would rock chunky boots, revamped jeans & oversized blazers. She was never afraid of doing her own thing and she had a real flair for quirky styling even as a youngster.

Here's Zandra back in the late 80s...

She's still one of the coolest cats I've ever met. Zandra and her husband Jens run one of Sweden's top tattoo and piercing studios called Heavenly Ink. 

We had a fabulous few days of reminiscing about old times, catching up on twenty years of life stories and just enjoying each others company, it was awesome and I can't wait to do it again!

Whilst on the subject of  wonderful women, a couple of days after Zandra left I had another fabulous visitor.

Jo who writes the blog Joyatri's Adventures in Vintage came for an afternoon of tea drinking, chatting and some light rummaging. I've met Jo three times now but it feels as if we've been pals for years, she's a gem of a gal and if you haven't as yet please check out her fabulous blog. Much like Zandra she's got a real flair for quirky styling, she's very creative and has a beautiful soul steeped in kindness. Jo brought the most delicious vegan muffins I've ever tasted, baked to perfection by her own fair hands. She'll be returning to the US in a little over a weeks time and then you'll be able to peruse and purchase from her fabulous Etsy shop again :)

On Sunday Frocktasia will be braving the elements and joining the fabulous Dandy Lion Market when it does a turn at the first ever Kentish Town Carnival...

According to the BBC weather website, rain is forecast for Sunday but I've been cosmically ordering sunshine for weeks so I'm simply not having that!

Rain or shine I'm sure it will be a fabulous day  :)

Hope you've all been keeping well.

Loads of love,

Jennie

xXx

Happy Happy Happy

 My love for a Russian scarf print is well catered for in the fabulous frock that I'm wearing today. I bought it last year from a car boot sale and it was going cheap cause the elastic around the neckline was completely knackered. No bother for the likes of me, I've got elastic coming out of my ears. I also have an Everest like mending pile so it took me quite some time to actually get around to fixing it. Over the past few days I have made a brave attack on said pile and am happy to announce that it does no longer rivals The Shard.

 The frock is labelled Tootique and I think it's probably from the 70s.

 Check out the voluminous sleeves and the newly elasticated neckline ;)

70s scarf print frock, 70s jacket, 80s boots, soap stone & macrame earrings and handmade Turkish necklace.

The Egyptian geese appeared with their brood yesterday, they are so adorable. I just wish I could scoop them all up and keep them safe from crows and herons that like nothing better than to snack on a these little fellows. The parents do their level best to keep predators away but crows are persistent and cunning.

I'd better hit the hay as it's getting rather late and I've got a big day tomorrow...

The Dandy Lion Market will be celebrating its second anniversary today and it's going to be blooming grand. I'll be there with a rail full of fabulous & fun  frockery.

Here's Stevie to sing a happy ditty to make us all smile, enjoy :)

...and just because I love you all and want you to be extra happy this weekend here's another happy tune for your listening pleasure...

I wish you all a brilliant weekend :)

Loads of love,

Jennie

xXx

Easy does it

Yesterday Frocktasia did yet another Can't Buy Me Love jumble at The Boogaloo. 

I brought a bargain rail  this time around and sold quite a few garments despite it being a little bit of a quiet one. Items priced at a fiver or less seems to be a successful formula at this particular venue, it is billed as a jumble after all. I also tried out a few random items that I haven't brought before, bundles of vintage & retro fabric, a few issues of 'Vanity Fair' from the early 90s and packets of vintage stockings. I was surprised that no one snapped up the two psychedelic print sundresses, maybe it was because there was a bit of a glut of funky clothing?!

I had a vision in my head of a funky chick rocking these teamed with a floppy hat and wellies at a festival this summer. I guess there's still time for them to be snapped up :)

I'm getting so much better at prepping for my markets now. It hardly takes any time at all for us to set up the pitch and at the end of the day we are usually packed up and ready to roll out of the venue in less than twenty minutes. I always do all the laborious stuff at home such as pricing and sticking stuff on hangers. So when we get to the venue it is just a case of quickly unpacking everything & hanging it straight onto the rail. I even prepare my display table at home so that I know exactly what I'm doing on the day and don't have to faff about & worry about presentation.

I had a couple of fabulous visitors yesterday :)

Lovely Jo from Joyatri's Adventures in Vintage popped in for a little browse and a chat. She lives in the US but intermittently comes over to stay here with her English boyfriend. When in the US she runs her Joyatri shop on etsy where she sells vintage items, clothing and crafting materials. If they were giving out prizes for best dressed CBML customer of the day then Jo would win hands down, just look at that fabulous feast-for-the-eyes maxi frock she was wearing...

My lovely Leslie and Aiden also popped by and stayed for the rest of the afternoon, we had beers and chatted about films. I said "don't ever ask me to be in your pub quiz team cause I know nothing about films" to which Aiden responded "great then you can be the bar runner"...every cloud has a silver lining, eh ;) 

Aiden then very kindly gave us a lift home and collected a barrow full of brownie points yet again, he's a gem of a man so he is. Leslie stayed for a spot of din-dins, vino and a two hour long Led Zeppelin concert on YouTube before heading back home.

Today the sun shone on our poor pasty white bodies and there was much rejoicing :)

 We went to the park, lazed about on a blanket and drank 2.8% Carling Zest.
I really love how there seems to be a lot more choice in the low-alcohol range now, gone are the days of "Kaliber or Cola?".

Tomorrow I'll be starting the preparations for next Saturday's Dandy :)

Right now I'm going for a late evening soak before jumping into bed after what has been an indulgently lazy day, blooming marvelous!

Hope you have all been taking it easy this weekend and feel ready to face the week ahead.

Loads of love,

Jennie

xXx

From wallflower to wildflower in a few easy steps

Yesterday was Wig Wednesday and what better way to celebrate the occasion than to create a magic wig wonderland in one of East London's coolest bars which incidentally is exactly what the amazing Samantha Barnes, director of Tangled Wigs decided to do. 

I was thrilled beyond words when Sam asked me if Frocktasia would like to pop along with a rail full of vintage & retro threads.

The event was a fundraiser for CLIC sargent a children's cancer charity and the fabulous theme of the evening was 'Barbie Glam' . I stocked my rail to the hilt with fancy frocks, blingy tops and pink jackets. I also brought a plethora of hats, specs and sunnies, stoles and feather boas so that anyone who didn't fancy a frock could still join in the dress-up fun and frolicks. Mark very kindly helped me cart all the gear down to Barrio East and even stuck around to help set my pitch up, what a diamond dude my hubby is. Mark would have stayed all night but unfortunately he starts work at a really ungodly hour. 

Sam had put together a wonderful team of people to make this a very special night. 

Gorgeous Emma who runs Purple Hearts Boutique had brought along a mouthwatering medley of fabulous jewellery and accessories. Check out her online store for trendy and affordable ladies fashion and awesome adornments.

 There was a lot of primping and preening going on with no less than two fabulous make-up professionals and Neil Curtis who is also Tangled Wigs head stylist.

 Here's wonderful Sam in action, making gorgeous girls look even more gorgeous in Tangled Wigs :)

 I was very tempted to snap up the blonde wig that I am wearing in the above picture.

Sam was doing a cracking deal, £30 for one or £50 for two with 10% going directly to CLIC sargent. I have a fair few wigs but none of them even come close to the softness and wearability of these. The wig that I started off in, was bought from my local wig emporium, it keeps slipping backwards so every now and again you have to yank it forward which can be a little disconcerting for who ever you may be in mid conversation with but the Tangled Wig that I tried on not only stayed put but it also felt really natural  & made me feel very sassy. These wigs are top notch quality for a very affordable price and I'm not just saying that cause I adore Sam, it's the truth.

 Every one was smiling, laughing and having a ball, even the guys in the band joined in the fun. Here they are playing their gig in wigs, all besides the cajón player who decided to go with a Frocktasia hat instead.

Barrio East was a perfect venue for this event, loads of funky peeps kicking about, an absolutely solid and fun-loving bar team and the venue itself looks the bees-knees. Colourful, quirky and altogether brilliant!

 The pink wigs were definitely the event favourite :)

 It was really nice to see the lads get in on the action too....you look fabulous dahlings!

I didn't manage to get many photos of people actually dressing-up in Frocktasia's threads but the in-house photographer was there most of the evening snapping away and there were of course other people with cameras, so I'm hoping some of their pics will be of the two people that got dolled up in the wedding dress and the awesome dude that squeezed into a hot pink evening gown, yay!

It was brilliant evening, Sam really got it spot on! 

I met some fabulously  kind and inspiring people that I would love to hook up with again. I think the 'Tangled Wigs Wig Wednesday Party' was an absolutely ace idea and I'd be the first one to volunteer if there was to be another one like it. It would actually be tremendously cool to do this on a monthly basis cause once rumour spreads I recon it could grow to become a very popular night out. A magical wig wonderland that offers up a liberal helping of hair- & make-up expertise, dress-up mayhem and a fun fun fun photo booth, that is my idea of a perfect night out :)

Wouldn't you want to go to a party like that?

My Barbie inspired ensemble of the day...

Blonde wig,  70s mini dress, lurex tights, lace-up boots,  Frocktasia disco-ball earrings & beaded bib necklace.

I'll leave you with a song from the undisputed queen of wigs, enjoy ;)

Loads of love,

Jennie

xXx

Peekaboo spring & Wig Wednesday

I bought the vintage-inspired frock that I am wearing today from a car boot sale, it's labelled Monsoon Fusion.

I've never bought anything new from Monsoon, come to think of it I can't even remember ever going into one of their shops. That's not to say I don't like the look of their clothes cause I do, it's just that their prices have always been a little bit prohibitive for the likes of me. Thank goodness for second hand :)

The Monsoon signature style is very folk-inspired often with embroidery and embellishment, what's not to love?!

Labelled UK18 it's way too big for me in the chest region but when teamed with my trusty suede waistcoat, no problem :)

Spring is still playing peekaboo hence the tights and boots. I was actually regretting not putting on a jacket, it was a wee bit chilly today....bonkers!

The Rhododendron is now in full bloom, I'll give it one more week before moving on to another backdrop. It is very beautiful, the flower clusters are reminiscent of those fabulous vintage petal swimming caps.

I bought a "new" pair of sunnies from the car boot sale yesterday, check these bad boys out...

They are from last years MauStein x Asos colab collection. Sunnies in this collection retailed from £45 to £70 a pair, I paid 50p for mine.

Whilst on the subject of collaborations...

When I met Sam, the founder and amazing driving force behind Tangled Wigs at the last Dandy Lion Market, she asked me if I'd be interested in taking part in an event that she was planning for Wig Wednesday on behalf on CLIC sargent cancer charity.

Charity fundraiser, wigs, frocks, hair- and make-up professionals, music, cocktails and the dolly box...of course I want to take part, I mean who wouldn't?!

You can get in on the action too by popping down to Barrio East, 141-143 Shoreditch High Street tomorrow Wednesday the 22nd May from 5.30pm until 11pm. You will be able to raid my awesome Barbie themed rail, try on a wig and have it professionally styled, there's even a professional make-up artist there to make you look even more beautiful than you already are. After all the primping and preening you also get to step into the dolly box to get some photographic evidence of your fabulousness...

I know it's Wednesday and apparently we shouldn't have fun on a school night but rip up the rule book for once and come down and grab a cocktail or five, this is going to be a hoot and a half and what more it is for a darn good cause :)

Huzzah for Wig Wednesday!

Hope you are all doing great peeps :)

Loads of love,

Jennie

xXx