Lindy Shopper’s Closet Episode 6 is up and I’m talking about the Art Deco Ocean Queen ensemble I wore for NYE 2017 at Lindy Focus. This is probably the last episode for the foreseeable future – I am an essential employee and have been working mostly from home, but on top of my city re-opening in two weeks (and going back to my office full-time), I find that I am way more busy than I anticipated. Family law is booming (my day job) and I have enough engagement with music-related projects that producing these videos is no longer in the cards. I hope you enjoyed these, I have enjoyed making them, if only to be able to talk to myself in my guest room about clothing and shoes that I love.
Tag: Art Deco
Slide & Swing Nora – Art Deco Dancing Flats
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
When I have heard about Slide & Swing dance shoes I usually hear about someone coveting their boots, but now I’m on their website having a panic attack over their ART DECO GLITTER DANCE FLATS. Do any of those words make you salivate? Available in teal, copper, and a sort of burnt gold color – limited edition, so you know what that means…
Phineas Cole by Paul Stuart Spring 2015 Tie Collection
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
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:
Dress Review: La Vie en Swing’s Berlin Dress
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
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.
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:
ADSVA Gatsby Afternoon Picnic 2014 Vendors
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
A few weeks ago I attended the third annual Art Deco Society of Virginia Gatsby Afternoon Picnic in Richmond, Virginia. I have seen this event grow from “let’s all meet in a park at the same time” to an organized event at the historic Wilton House Museum, with live music, vintage vendors, an on-site barber, food trucks, photo booth, contests, media coverage, shuttles, parking attendants, an MC, and even an alcohol sponsor. I was happy to see some familiar faces amongst the vendors and pleasantly surprised to find vintage vendors that were new to me.
Let’s start on one end of the line and move to the other – first in the lineup was Chatterblossom, who has become my own personal vintage millinery Philip Treacy. The gorgeous millinery was on display, as well as lovely jewels, flapper headbands, and a nice selection of menswear accessories. If only women’s dress shirts didn’t button from the opposite side, a tie clip with vintage microphone would have certainly left with me!
Another standby for me, Raleigh Vintage, was present with a drool-worthy display of Art Deco era goods and jewels. This display was on the heels of another festival in Raleigh the previous day, but the busy bees at Raleigh Vintage persevered and were present in force. I am seriously in love with all of the jewelry in their display, can I just take the silver tray full of necklaces home with me? Also, lots of event-appropriate cotton frocks in lovely prints, embroidery, and all things just-so.
Machine Dance Vintage and Brooksy shared a lovely space together, complimenting a rack of MDV vintage dresses and goods with Brooksy’s hand-crafted 1920’s hats and headbands. I have long been a fan of MDV’s Etsy shop and it was good to see some of these great vintage pieces in person. I have also been following and eagerly anticipating the soon-to-be-launched Brooksy line of hats, created by ADSVA president Olivia Lloyd. The construction of these hats and the attention to detail is as impeccable as Ms. Lloyd’s vintage wardrobe. I am holding out for Myrna Loy’s pixie hat!
My husband’s family lives in Virginia Beach, which has many great thrift stores, but I was unaware of VB Vintage – no brick and mortar shop, but certainly an impressive enough of a display that I was kicking myself for not knowing about them before now. Their Etsy shop doesn’t even come close to displaying the number of goods they had on hand at the Gatsby picnic, which means there’s even more to come – also, the benefit of being on location for these trunk shows! Lots of great accessories, knick knacks, and a few stellar pieces of clothing from the era.
Monkey Shynes was up next, with a small selection of 78 rpm records and assorted vintage memorabilia and crafts.
Finally, on the other end of vendor’s row was MA’s Mad House of Adornment, another Etsy vendor with great feathered headpieces and eclectic jewelry. I am particularly fond of feathered headpieces made from feathers with curled ends – the effect is really stunning and the result is that they tend to lay so nicely in whatever configuration I have seen them in. I was also amused by the Scarlett O’Hara necklace – the movie came out in 1939, so we’ll humor the reference.
Check out the photos below – enjoy!
Norfolk Jacket with Art Deco Pleats
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
So…this is gorgeous. Size 44 is a lucky size today! Starting bid $99.99.
Art Deco Cufflinks
Another Tie for Christmas? Yes, Please!
This post was written by Lindy Dandy.
I haven’t seen any good tie deals pop up on ol’ eBay, lately, but here’s a good one.
I especially love the blue one and the grey-green tie too.
By the way, ties CAN be a great gift for the men in your life. Just try to make sure your gift complements their style and their needs. (I’m probably good for ties, though. Maybe it’s time to gift some of them).
Happy Hunting!
Vintage Showgirl Costumes
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
I can’t help but be fascinated when these vintage dance performance items show up on eBay. I posted some 1920’s tap shoes earlier, but these auctions really take the cake! eBay seller monicasvintagefashions has four vintage dance costumes worthy of a Busby Berkeley style dance number, which is pretty rare, considering I had trouble even finding reference photographs while researching costumes for The Carolina Fascinators. These are just fantastic, especially the ones from the 1920’s…paging Sharon Davis and Sister Kate…
Classic Hardware
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
With the price of bakelite jewelry in the astronomical range, reproductions of this classic early plastic jewelry are a welcome commodity. I’ve found a few “fakelite” pieces via Forever 21 a few years ago and apparently Avon did some reproductions in the 1980’s, but both have been found in limited quantities. Classic Hardware was a sight for sore eyes, with a line of classic bakelite-style (called “Retrolite” on the website) pins, bracelets, necklaces, and rings that will give your vintage or reproduction dress the perfect finishing touch.
According to the website, “Karyn Cantor is the originator and driving force behind Classic Hardware and it is her personal vision that is reflected in every handcrafted piece. Her love of vintage fashions mixed with a strong post-industrial aesthetic is further influenced by art nouveau and dadaism. This striking amalgam of sensibilities, coupled with Karyn’s sense of humor has developed into her current line of accessories that reflect today’s sense of individuality, sophistication and spunk…Karyn’s tastes are eclectic and varied, running the gamut between rock ‘n’roll, punk rock, rockabilly and old timey music. She loves swing dancing, live music, travel, flea markets and playing the ukelele.”
She loves swing dancing! One can’t help but wonder if Karyn noticed all the unadorned lapels and necklines at dances and wanted to do something about it…
Here are some of my favorite “Retrolite” pieces from the Classic Hardware website:
20% Off Leluxe Clothing
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
To get 20% off any Leluxe Clothing item all you have to do is go to their Facebook page and “Like” them. It’s that simple! If you’ve been on the fence about one of these dresses, perhaps 20% off could get you off the fence and into one of these beautiful reproduction 1920’s beaded dresses? 😉
The Radio Star Lives
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
Two Lindy Hoppers, Jeramie and Amber Anderson, are leaving North Carolina for Louisiana and, inevitably, moving begats getting rid of things. Fortunately, Lindy Hoppers have cool things to get rid of and the Andersons have two radio/CD players in vintage styling that they would like to find homes for. If you have a home for one of these radios, I’m sure they could work out a super duper deal for you to get the radios to you. Post here if you are interested!
Leluxe Samples in Copper and Gold
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
One of my favorite retailers, Leluxe Clothing Co., has listed some sample dresses on eBay, lovely reproductions of 1920’s dresses that were produced once. Will they become part of the Leluxe lineup of dazzling dresses? I don’t have the answer to that, but I do know they are lovely and you can have first, and perhaps only, dibs on wearing these gilded models for 2011.
Urban Outfitters Early Spring 2011
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
The catalogs keep coming in the mail and, while the title says early spring, the Urban Outfitters pictorial actually wants to whisk you away to a tropical locale, not unlike the newest Shabby Apple collection. Urban Outfitters gives vintage a twist, of course, pairing new with old and doing some great reproduction basic accessories to enhance your dance, vintage, or vintage-inspired wardrobe.
For the ladies, I am loving the shoe selection, which features an array of awesome oxfords just begging for some heel slides, as well as some more practical Keds style sneaks for sueding. A pair of high waisted sailor shorts (pictured at right) might have to make a home in my closet, as well as a pair of their chunky wedges and a wonderful floppy, wide brim straw hat (to keep the sun off my face at the DCLX Dupont Circle dance!)
Note: The pair of oxfords I really love are not available online yet, but keep your eyes peeled for tone on tone brown leather and straw oxfords, as well as some strawberry print Vans (SO CUTE). C’mon Urban, get this stuff up and available!
Here are the goods:
Men’s Art Deco Watches
This post was written by Lindy Shopper.
What time is it? While it’s not Lindy Focus time for a long while, it is nice to know what time it is during a dance or to make sure you’re not late for one. For men, getting the vintage look is all in the details, and a watch is can be a stylish and useful item to add to your look, for both dances and every day.
There are tons of watches on eBay, but I’m going to give a special shout out to Bulova, who not only makes great watches, but also sold their watches in these amazing Art Deco watch boxes during the Art Deco period. I have a 1930’s Bulova watch with one of these crazy cases and I leave it out on the dresser because it is the coolest thing in the room – it was worth the $20 for the watch just to get the case. 🙂
Here are some of my favorite watches for men on eBay right now:
Lindy Shopper 
