It all started when I came across these “fakelite” bat wing earrings on Etsy – I adored them, but because of my haircut, no one can really see my earrings on a normal day, but WHAT IF THEY COULD BE DRESS CLIPS. I messaged Summer Blue and the answer was affirmative, that I must be reading her mind because she was thinking about doing sweater clips with a removable chain. Two weeks later, said bat sweater clips were in my hands and a fan was born!
My obsession continues – in a nutshell, Summer Blue creates “high-quality, handmade jewelry with a vintage flair. Inspired by fine and costume jewelry from the 20’s to the 60’s with an emphasis on the Bakelite and confetti Lucite styles.” The quality is stellar, you can tell she puts a lot of thought into her designs and the execution. The selection of crazy adorable jewelry is HUGE, but her designs fly off the shelf – I went back to get a Christmas holly pin on my wish list from last week, thinking I’m ahead of the game, and it was already gone! Finally, the prices just can’t be beat – real bakelite can be 10 times the cost of these items, and other fakelite reproductions tend to run a bit higher in price, but Summer Blue manages to deliver the most adorable goods at a very reasonable cost.
I’m in LOVE LOVE LOVE! Take a gander at my faves, but go look for yourself because there’s something for everyone here!
Because sometimes you need to be purple glitter Batman/Batwoman.A tiki necklace and earrings set.A peach!Sparkly star earrings that will go with everything!The Halloween stuff is just TOO CUTEJust in time for fall!Obsessing over this turnip…For your mermaid ensemble…I could keep going, there’s so much good stuff here!
These Art Deco tights from ModCloth – the Cheered to the Deco Tights – deserve their own post, there is so much wonderful detail here! The detailed knitwork, the Deco plumes, the diamond at the top, and the faux-thigh-high effect of the tights that finish out in a fishnet at the thighs and bum (I imagine this is very forgiving) – I’d love to see these in a Charleston contest!
2015 was a great year for vendors at the International Lindy Hop Championships, highlighting a range of merchandise from tee shirts to custom suiting to vintage and everything in-between. The new hotel, the Marriott Crystal Gateway, was more ideally suited for hosting vendors, with a more obvious space near the ballroom for display tables and a more trafficked area near the elevators. Here’s the who’s who of the vendors:
Dynamic vending duo Carol and Laurie
Laurie Gilkenson, affectionately known as (and actually) Nina’s mom, was set up with a selection of shoes from Dancestore and an assortment of clothing and shoes formerly belonging to Nina herself, an avid and long-time vintage clothing collector. Helping Laurie at the booth was Carol Dant, Nina’s cousin, who was attending ILHC as her very first dance event! I am glad that Dancestore remains a presence at ILHC, as it is always nice to try dance shoes on in person and you never know what mishaps may happen with the dance shoes you have, so being able to find a replacement immediately is invaluable. There were some truly choice vintage pieces for sale, such as rayon print dresses, silver 1930’s t-strap heels, and a crazy 1920’s coat with fox collar and clasp.
Victor’s fabric samples and ties
A first-time vendor, Victor Celania (who I blogged about just before ILHC), was present with his custom line of menswear and some ready-to-wear items such as ties and socks. Victor was a welcome sight, with his tape measure around his neck like a stole for much of the event, ready to measure dancers for their custom suits. The display was so cheerful with colorful silk ties and patterned socks.
Forties Forward may earn the award, along with Dancestore, for the longest-running attendance at ILHC, selling their staple colorful blooms along with some new feathered beauties, vintage neck ties and bow ties. Their booth is always a welcome sight!
Lovely buttons on trousers by Chloe Hong
Chloe Hong‘s custom menswear and womenswear was another bright spot, with fabric swatches for days, colorful socks, starched collars, braided belts and sparkly bloomers. Thoughtful details in Chloe’s designs include shiny buttons on trousers and skirts and all the pleats and belt back details one could ever ask for in a jacket. Having experienced tailors and designers like Chloe and Victor present at ILHC make taking the plunge on a custom suit so much easier and more accessible. They are friends, fellow dancers, here to help you look your best!
Behind the Beat’s sassy tribute to Dawn Hampton
Last, but certainly not least, the largest display at ILHC was from Behind the Beat Apparel, with a full range of tees, hoodies, hats, and bags with clever Lindy Hop and jazz-themed screen prints. I have two items of particular note:
1) Behind the Beat is conducting a fund-raiser for Dawn Hampton to raise money to publish her book – Dawn needs cash in hand to hire a publisher and here’s how you can help: Behind the Beat is offering “2 different T-Shirt Options, a Tote Bag, and a 24” x 36” signed, numbered, and framed Limited Edition Commemorative Poster. We will be giving a percentage of each sale directly to Dawn.” For more information on the fundraiser, please visit the Behind the Beat website and watch the video below.
2) I am in love with their Duke Ellington shoe bag, not only because it bears Ellington’s handsome mug, but because it has two slots sewn in the back of the bag for your shoes, with a main compartment for everything else. It’s so simple, it’s brilliant. And now I can’t find the bag on the website to link it! Arrrrgh! Will hopefully edit soon and add link.
And that’s a wrap! Until next year, ILHC!
Nina’s gorgeous 1930’s t-straps could have been yours!Carol models a 1920’s coat with fox fur collar.A favorite from Dancestore’s selection.Pick up a quintessential bow tie from Celania Custom Clothing.The main part of Victor’s display at ILHC.I adore these socks from Victor’s booth!Classic blooms from Forties Forward.The Forties Forward neck tie and bow tie selection.Feathered beauties from Forties Forward.A cross-section of suit jackets from Chloe Hong.I am also in love with these socks from Chloe’s table – feathers! Stripes!Sparkly bloomers by Chloe Hong.Lovely row of trousers from Chloe Hong.And Chloe’s collars!An array of printed goodies from Behind the Beat, including that wonderful Ellington shoe bag!A Savoy Ballroom pillow, perfect for every Lindy Hopper’s couch!Life as a Lindy Hopper is truly sweet! 😀
I’ve seen several sartorial friends excited about this sale, so check out Simon James Cathcart’s high rise, wide leg 1930’s jeans with a cinch back, called the Brakeman Waist Overalls (but not overalls in the traditional/American sense). The other jeans on this site retail for 175 pounds (about $268.00), but from Sept. 1-4 you can get this particular pair for 99 pounds (about $151.00). These look super rad!
I must confess, for the past two days, since Saint Savoy posted a sneak preview of their new Riviera shoe, I have found myself going back to their Facebook page multiple times a day to go look at these shoes. THAT GREEN. That blue…and I’d definitely get some use out of that neutral pair, too. They had me at color, but I’m sold at the 3.5 cm (about 1.4 inches) heel.
Oklahoma dancers Michelle Stokes and Laurel Ryan have ideas and designs on starting a made-to-measure clothing line called Blushing Violet for swing dancers, vintage styles and cuts in modern fabrics, made for the wearer with our special dancer needs in mind. What’s great is that you will know about this before it even exists and you can influence and share what YOU like to wear dancing that may influence what they offer in their clothing line. Take a minute and fill out this brief survey about the who, what, where, when and why of dance clothing: http://freeonlinesurveys.com/s/fEiCLxdq
It will be so interesting to follow Blushing Violet’s progress, I hope to stay in the loop and share updates on this blog!
I miss Victor terribly now that he’s no longer on the east coast, he’s the best to go vintage shopping with because he’s a digger and he’s persistent!
As we approach the end of August, no doubt you have the International Lindy Hop Championships on the brain, whether you are attending in person or watching via Yehoodi broadcast. While ILHC has not been known for its quantity of vendors, it is known for rare opportunities to interact with special custom clothiers, such as Chloe Hong. This year, one of my earliest Lindy shopping companions, Victor Celania will add his expertise to the vendor lineup through his Celania Custom Clothing.
Based in Austin, Texas, Victor has created his own line of made-to-measure custom clothing that essentially takes everything that is great about Victor and whittles it down to something that is perfect for you. What this means is that Victor uses his knowledge of Lindy Hop, vintage fashion, menswear, modern fashion, the custom garment industry, fabrics, and his listening skills, willingness to try new things skills, and his ability to be that encouraging person in your life that assures you that yes, you should try this on and, no, that color is not bad for you, and yes, this will work with your coloring, and JUST TRUST VICTOR. The gents on his Instagram feed would rival (nay, exceed) anything GQ is putting out. He can simultaneously get you out of your comfort zone, yet find something that becomes so very YOU that you didn’t quite know how stylish you really are.
Victor will be scheduling appointments through Saturday evening at ILHC. Set up an appointment now by emailing him at vcelania@yahoo.com and visit his Instagram page to see more of his work.
Victor dresses an entire band, Austin’s Soul Track Mind.
They certainly aren’t the first shoe to foray into hybrid sneaker/dress oxford territory, but our flagship Lindy Hop shoe has introduced a two tone wingtip Champion oxford in their fall collection (which is worth a gander in its entirety, some really good colors, patterns, and fabrics). Available in two tone wool and suede in brown and black and an all-leather brown with houndstooth inset.
This summer I’ve grown to appreciate seersucker fabric more and more, not just as a Southerner, but as a sartorial gift that bestows charm, ventilation, and wrinkle-resistance upon its wearer. It really is an ideal fabric for swing dancers, a respite from the heat of the air and our own bodies, that is lightweight, breathable, practical, movable, and easy to pack. I’ve decided to compile some vintage and reproduction seersucker lovelies from Etsy to celebrate this wonderful fabric today:
Floral 1930’s/40’s seersucker blouseSeersucker vest by MacheteNSons1940’s summer suit with peplum1940’s/50’s gabardine blend brown and white striped trousersFloral 1940’s seersucker romper1950’s seersucker shirtSeersucker 1940’s day dress
While I was perusing the racks at Bygones Vintage Clothing while attending The Process in Richmond, VA, I happened upon a new-to-me brand of reproduction dresses called Lazy Bones. It appears to be a sort of Australian-based Anthropologie-type shop, with vintage-inspired clothing and home goods. From the website:
“Lazybones takes a fresh and whimsical approach to designing clothing and homewares for modern, relaxed living. Inspired by vintage, Lazybones clothing has become well known for its quirky signature prints, delicate embroidery and jacquard knitwear. Our homewares including bedding, ceramics and wallpaper inspires a fresh and playful approach to creating unique spaces within our homes. Our aim is to continually evolve each season designing products that surprise and delight our customers who have grown to love our brand across the world.”
With a name like Lazy Bones, there’s a great sense of humor here, along with an ease in the clothing that suggests you could still be lazy and look fabulously lazy. A lot of the pieces do remind me of comfy vintage finds, things that I buy to lounge or dance in, because of the fabric choices, prints, and easy shapes. Here are some of my favorites from Lazy Bones:
(Edited to add that there’s a USA website with better shipping options for those of us in the states at http://lazybonesusa.com/ – thanks for the tip, Jenny!)
Alice Dress in the Port Fairy printAllegra Dress in Sorrento printAlanna Dress in white with blue embroidery; also available in white with red embroideryThat elusive 20’s day dress reproduction! The Matilda Dress in indigo; also available in silver.I love that they offer slips! The Undressed Slip, also available in black, to go under everything!Verity cardigan, also available in blue and green – I love a patterned cardi!
Just needs a button…and someone who doesn’t mind a shoe that a few other people stretched out a bit….
Go directly to the Re-mix Vintage Shoes sale page and marvel at the prices – slightly damaged goods yields great sales on many styles and sizes! The cheapest pair is going for $35, this pair of blue Cassandre pumps – the issues? Floor model used for try-ons and is missing a button – but not even the button you really need to keep it on your feet, you could sew it down or replace it with your own button. There are less-damaged goods at a range of higher prices, but all are less than you’d pay for a new, pristine pair. I mean, we’re just going to get them scratched up on the dance floor anyway, right? 😉
On a tip from Morgan Day, I stumbled upon the prints of Chay Hawes, a freelance illustrator from the UK, who “creates custom, retro, science and minimalism influenced designs, available as both prints and greetings cards. Chay is inspired by old music hall bills, mid-20th century travel posters, retro cartoons, scientific discoveries, music, cinema, picture books, comics, Lindy Hop, and the historic Roman city [Chester] he calls home.” Of particular interest to us are his Lindy Hop lyrics prints, which feature gems sung by the Andrews Sisters, Wynonie Harris, Nat King Cole, Cab Calloway, and others. Wouldn’t “Keep On Churnin’ ‘Til the Butter Comes” be clever in a kitchen? Subtle/not subtle.
Maybe you have a special lyric you’d like to frame and put on your wall? “Many of the designs can be customised with names, dates and locations to create a truly unique reminder of a special event, or as a personalised gift for a friends and family.” Do it to it!
More than a nod to Art Deco, the Phineas Cole Spring tie collection is so expressly Art Deco that the word Deco is used in most of the tie names. These ties are gorgeous in their geometric simplicity, just vintage enough to be convincing, yet modern enough that they might even go by unnoticed as a throwback (but certainly noticed for their loveliness!). A sample of the goodies:
Line Deco Silk TieDeco Dot Silk TieDeco Fans Silk TieDeco Swirl Silk TieDeco Triangle Silk Tie
The Berlin dress in mint in the A-line skirt option, with pockets.
A few months ago I wrote about La Vie en Swing and, in particular, their Berlin dress in purple, which resembles a dress worn by Agent Carter in her TV series. The Berlin dress also comes in mint green, which caught my attention even more, because I adore green and this particular shade is not something I have in my closet. Mint can be difficult in solids and, if not carefully styled, can end up looking a bit clinical, like hospital scrubs. This dress is far from scrubs because the details are impeccable:
– The fabric has a fine lustre that gives it depth and movement
– The fabric is lightweight and flowing, making it ideal for dancing – 100% viscose, machine washable if you don’t mind tricky ironing, or dry clean as a lazy option
– A slight puffed sleeve – there are never enough modern dresses with sleeves!
– Inset waistband, which could easily accommodate a belt
– A keyhole neckline with tie, which I adore
– The most divine Art Deco seaming around the neckline on both the front and the back of this dress and on the pockets. Only a solid color could do this justice, so that these details can be seen and not lost in a print.
Love everything about this neckline!
The dress on the website is an A-line skirt with pockets, but La Vie En Swing also offers this dress with a more full skirt, slightly trumpeted, and better suited to my shape for movement and desires for swishy skirt-ness. If you are interested in a fuller skirt, do contact them about this option, they have been most helpful and accommodating!
I decided to give this dress a test run at Stompology X where I was singing with Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five. The dress presented very well on stage and I received loads of compliments on the color and the cut. I wish I had been able to dance more in the dress, but I did have one dance that weekend with Jonathan on a band break and it passed with flying colors – full arm rotation, modest skirt flare, good overall for movement, nothing that moved in a way that was uncomfortable or cause for worry or annoyance. A solid, beautiful choice for a dance dress that I would highly recommend. I don’t have anything else quite like it in my closet, and that’s saying a lot!
Check out the photos on the website and the ones I’ve posted below – still waiting for more people to post photos from Stompology, I know people took photos of me, I saw you! Until then, you’ll have the selfies I snapped at my host’s home before the gig. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions:
The classic mirror selfie – the fit is so good, I’m a very happy girl. 🙂See this happiness? All the seams…
All Balboa Weekend celebrated its 15th Anniversary this year and I celebrated my 9th anniversary of attending ABW. This Balboa homecoming/family reunion is one that I look forward to every year for the friends, the amazing dancing, and the wonderful vintage shopping that is available in Cleveland. This year, my report will combine shopping inside and outside the hotel, since some brick and mortar stores set up booths at ABW and other remain in their brick edifices. All are worthy of mention and this year’s shops and vendors did not disappoint!
My partner in crime this year was Berkeley, California dancer Alisa Szatrowski – I’ll give an honorable mention to Jack Flaps, a wonderful brunchy place she discovered and where we fortified ourselves before a day of vintage shopping.
1940’s rayon blouse at Sweet Lorain
Our first stop is my always first stop, Sweet Lorain, and the owner Redwin Lewis welcomed us with open arms and escorted us back to the 30’s and 40’s area, where he showed us they had pulled additional racks of 30’s and 40’s clothing out just for ABW. *squee!* Soon, Alisa and I were lost in a jungle of clothing, amongst the close and very full racks, calling out to each other as if we were playing Marco Polo to try to find each other to show off choice garments. Sweet Lorain did not disappoint and Alisa and I soon had a dressing room full of things to try on, with another helpful employee pulling additional garments based on our selections. Seriously, an A+ for customer service. We both left with some wonderful pieces and warm fuzzy feelings about everything at Sweet Lorain.
Next stop was Chelsea’s Vintage Clothing and Costumes, which is an impressive warehouse full of clothing, and particularly has a large selection of menswear, which I wrote about more in-depth last year. We ran into dancer and DJ Bill Speidel and we did a quick run through the menswear, as I’m always shopping for certain dudes and the hubs. I left Chelsea’s empty-handed, but Alisa had great luck with late 30’s/early 40’s dresses in velvet and faille – dreamy!
The vendor market at ABW opens at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday and we were there even a little before that, with anxious vintage lovers already hovering over the booths.
The Gabriele, Re-Mix Vintage Shoes
The first booth you come to is Re-Mix Vintage Shoes and this booth was abuzz all weekend, with ladies buying shoes, trying on many more, and ogling the beautiful wares. The big hit this year was a new style, Gabriele, which is a low heeled 1930’s shoe with a t-strap, an alternative to the Balboa Style, with a slightly different shape and different colors. I would love to hear some reviews from the ladies who bought them and wore them this weekend – I did see Valerie Salstrom try them on the first day and then didn’t take them off as she continued to set up for the event!
A wonderful display of hats from Flower Child
Next in the line of vendors was Flower Child, which is comprised of several individual vendors that make up part of the brick and mortar store, and which takes up most of the hallway. They are always good about bringing in new inventory every day, taking requests, and having a nice selection of clothing, accessories, and some novelty items and knickknacks from the swing era. My favorite ABW find for this year came from Flower Child’s booth, a fully functional scales brooch, perfect for me as both a Libra and a lawyer – for serious, the scales have tiny chains and you could actually put things in the bowls and the scales would tip, SO COOL.
Ready to shake it
New to the vendor list this year was Sugar Shakers, the handiwork of Joanna Kassoulides Thibault, who got her start stitching chorus girl costumes for a troupe of the same name in Toronto and decided, after accumulating a wardrobe of costumes, that she would sell some of these versatile pieces. I love a good trumpet skirt and Joanna had a nice sampler of trumpet skirts, polka dot wrap blouses, bakelite-inspired earrings, as well as sharing a table with her husband Mike Thibault‘s handmade earrings and Vintage Jazz Art prints.
Cherry blossoms abound!
Next in the vendor lineup is ChatterBlossom, aka Jamie Sturdevant, who is local to me, but for ABW everyone can see her amazing handiwork up close, with flowers and headpieces made from vintage millinery flowers and jewelry made from vintage buttons. Seeing in person is even better, as I noted people running to their rooms for garments, trying to match a bloom to a dress, and (I know I’m a broken record on this, but) the colors in the vintage flowers are just so right for vintage clothing, for obvious reasons, and they are so much more exquisitely detailed than most modern artificial flowers I have seen. Jamie does custom pieces, too, so you can find the perfect bloom for that one of a kind vintage dress.
1940’s ties at The Cleveland shop
Holding down the end of the hallway was The Cleveland Shop, which had a nice selection of men’s and women’s clothing, accessories, and jewelry. The owner would also bring in new items daily, and even brought in some divine tropical rayon fabric one day, that was gone before it could hit the market (I can’t wait to see that blouse, Jamie!). Oh, to have a warehouse full of endless vintage things to sell!
Each year the vendors at ABW are one of the things I look forward to most about the event and I truly appreciate the effort the vendors put into setting up, displaying, being there to sell, breaking it all down, and sometimes traveling great distances – I think Philip Heath, the owner of Re-mix Vintage Shoes, wins this year by flying in and shipping shoes from California, though past ABWs venders have flown in from as far away as the UK and Australia. We love that you do it and we’ll keep buying all the beautiful things. 🙂
Here are some more photos of all the lovely things:
Who knew the Cotton Club had a soda? At Jack Flaps.1940’s jumper with fringe and embroidered pockets at Sweet Lorain.1940’s rayon dress at Sweet Lorain.Another 40’s number in cotton from Sweet LorainA cool summer jacket from Chelsea’s CostumesHeadbands in all the colors from ChatterBlossomDivine orchids from ChatterBlossomA selection of goodies from The Cleveland ShopA closeup of the detail on this 1940’s dress from The Cleveland ShopTrumpet skirt, Sugar Shaker styleVintage Jazz Art printsMore options to grace your walls, from Vintage Jazz ArtMore of the man spread from Flower ChildGorgeous 1930’s dress from Flower Child.Gold bathing suit and the biggest sun hat I’ve ever seen, at Flower Child.
Lindy Shopper 
