1940s Campus Suits for Women

There is something so iconic about these early 1940s wool suits.

The silhouettes are simple and flattering and the colors are chic.  They're youthful and sophisticated at the same time.  Kinda makes me want to go back to school and prance around campus...hhmm, is there a grad program for vintage clothing?

Early 1940s plaid suit is in the shop.

Sears Catalog, Winter 1942-43 

Dorothy Shapard, student at Vassar, in a career classic blue grey wool dress with a plaid jacket in blue, grey, red and black and a red hat, Spetember 1941.  Image from  © Condé Nast Archive/Corbis

And I love these 1940s black suede oxfords (never worn & still in the original box) to complete the look.  Get them here.

To learn more about the elements of 1940s style, visit our favorite vintage style expert, Sammy Davis Vintage.

Perfect Harmony - A 1940s Asian-style Jacket and an Asian Garden

While Isaac & I were in Portland a couple of weeks ago, we were lucky enough to make it out to the Japanese Garden.  It is truly an amazing place - so peaceful and beautiful.    When we returned home, I was inspired to bring out an Asian inspired 1940s jacket that I'd been keeping in our backroom (where I keep the spectacular items that I just can't let go of) and share it with you.  

Stunning silhouette with wide shoulders and a nipped waist.

Hand-rolled toggles using the same fabric as the jacket.

Glamorous wide, asymmetrical sleeves.

Golden silk with a classic woven pattern.

Fishtail peplum back.

This amazing jacket is available in the shop!

I think the photos from the Japanese Garden speak for themselves.  I hope you enjoy them.

And, yes, I do realize that the jacket is a Chinese-style and the garden is Japanese...
but I was inspired nonetheless. :-)

Halloween Costume Ideas - Halloween Pin Up

Halloween seems to bring out a plethora of "sexy" costumes, but this isn't a new phenomenon!  If you want to show a little skin this year, why not go back to a classic, sexy pin-up look?  Witches were a popular Halloween-bombshell look in the 1940s and 1950s, so make sure you have a pointy hat!

Remember, the key to the Halloween Pin-Up is sexy Hollywood glamour...NOT trashy or slutty.

Love that she's in her uber-sexy 50s lingerie...just add a hat and broom!

The ever-glamorous Ava Gardner.

And here's a sexy 1940s witch with friends.

Find more Halloween pin-up inspiration on Pinterest.

More Halloween costume ideas

Mad Men (season 5)
Deliverance
The Suffragette

Treasures from the Liberty Antiques Festival

     On our way to Asheville this past weekend, Isaac and I stopped off at the Liberty Antiques Festival (a twice yearly antiques show that covers a huge field).    While almost all of the tents are filled with antique furniture and smalls, there were a handful of booths with vintage accessories, jewelry, and few pieces of clothing.   Despite the lack of vintage clothing, I was still able to find a few treasure that I just wouldn't leave behind.  

The first tent we stopped into had a huge collection of vintage purses and jewelry, along with more linens than I've seen in one place.  

Vintage purses.  The navy & white 1940s telephone cord purse HAD to go home with me!

More vintage purses.  It was killing me to leave some of them behind (especially the red & white cloth with the black celluloid handle).

One of the three cases filled with bakelite!  Sadly, it was all too much for my budget.  

I had intended to take lots of photos to share with you, but...alas...after this first booth, I was way to distracted with looking, shopping, and playing to remember to snap away.


And here are some of the goodies that found their way home with me...

A few vintage display pieces for some upcoming pop-up shops.

Left: A 1940s navy & white telephone cord purse.
Right: a 1930s black felt cloche hat.

A 1920s rayon knit flapper jacket with miles & miles of fringe.

I love pieces like this...they can easily be paired with a vintage dress or with a pair of jeans.

It is going to take a little work to restore it, but it will so be worth it!

1940s Land Girls : The Uniform

Ok, ok...I know...with the premier of Season 5 of Mad Men, I should be gushing with 1960s Mad Men-inspored posts.  But, I'm still enamored with the show that was supposed to be my "filler" until the return of Mad Men - Land Girls.  In honor of my finishing season 3 of this lovely BBC series, I'm taking a closer look at that iconic uniform!

WLA Dress Uniform

Women joining the Women's Land Army were issues a simple uniform consisting of 2 green sweaters, 2 pairs of brown breeches (either twill or corduroy), 1 pair of brown overalls, 6 pairs of brown long woolen socks, 3 shirts, a green tie, a pair of shoes, a pair of ankle boots, a pair of tall boots, 2 overcoats, 1 raincoat,  and a brown floppy hat or beret. 

Some images of the Australian WLA uniform

The iconic floppy brown hat

Happy Land Girls!

The WLA uniforms were often ill-fitting and/or weren't appropriate for the season or the work to be done.  Many of these crafty women altered their clothing.

Breeches into shorts

Those who worked for the Women's Land Army were not paid any enlisted services benefits following the war and only received recognition from the Queen in August 2009. Courtesy Brighton Museum.

The REAL Land Girls - 1940s Women's Land Army

For some strange reason, I came out of school (including grad school!) knowing about Bomb girls and Rosie the Riveter (the women who worked the factory and industrial jobs during the war), but never hearing the story of the women who replaced the male agricultural and forestry workers called up for war.   My first introduction to these women came just about a week ago via the BBC series Land Girls.  Since then, I've spent many hours combing the internet to learn the real story of these amazing women.

The Women's Land Army actually started during World War I in Britain.  As another war loomed, the Women's Land Army was resurrected in 1939 to ensure Britain had an ample food supply during.  Initially, the young women were mostly volunteers from the countryside,  but were quickly joined by women from London and northern industrial towns (making up about 1/3 of the WLA).  By 1941, women were being conscripted into service in the WLA.

     Work on the farms was hard, dirty, tiring and demanded a lot of sustained physical strength. The WLA were expected to harvest the crops, pitch wheat sheaves, feed the animals, milk cows, saw timber, sow seeds, dig ditches, hedging, and even mending tractors. "Over a thousand women were employed as rat-catchers, a very useful job given that each rat could eat about 50kg of food in a year.*"   Most of the WLA girls worked and lived on small farms, but some stayed in camps and were directed to Forestry Commission and War Agriculture land, working on larger farms or for the forestry service.

The WLA was also service in the US from 1943 - 47.  It continued in Britain until 1950 to help ease food shortages and rationing in the lean years just after the war.  Despite the often arduous work and sometimes unpleasant living conditions, it appears that many women enjoyed their work and made lasting friendships.  

A US-WLA ID card.  The story behind this card along with many wonderful letters can be found Letters from Land Army Camp.

What amazing stories these women have; they inspire me to do more and be more!  
 

 

Land Girls - my latest BBC obsession

 While desperately searching Netflix a few days ago (no TV in our house), I ran across the most lovely surprise...the BBC series Land Girls.   If you haven't seen it, you must.  Set in the 1940s, the show centers around women who are working on a rural farm to replace the male farmhands away because of the war.  Their interactions with each other and the locals are touching and humorous...there is scandal, romance, drama, and comedy.  And, best of all....the clothes! 

I'm still working on season 1 and am so excited that there are at least 2 more seasons ahead of me (don't spoil any plot for me)! 

Look for more to follow on the REAL land girls!

Let it Rain! 1940s Umbrellas

Inspired by the recent rainy weather!
Sometimes I feel like I collect just about everything (and I think Isaac might concur), but one of my most favorite fledging collections is a small, but growing, cache of vintage umbrellas.  I feel like I can justify collecting these since I actually use most of them and they don't take up too much room in a house already overflowing with vintage.

These older portable-canopies were valued not just for their functionality, but also as a fashion accessory.  As such, they were crafted with amazing details in stunning colors and patterns.  There are just a few of my favorite ones from early 1940s.

You can survive any cloudy day with this amazing umbrella!  I love how the classic brown plaid contrasts with the whimsical celadon green, heart-shaped/sunflower carved handle.

This one has the most amazing floral-print rayon canopy; I have a feeling that is was at one time part of a set either with a matching dress or with other matching accessories.  The handle is an etched lucite.

This is currently the only one I have with a true bakelite handle and I'm thrilled that it's lime green!

from the Spring/Summer 1941 Sears Catalog