Eastbourne Awaits!!!

Well, we are setting off for Eastbourne today and will back late Thursday, so I may get a post in then!! These piccys are courtesy of East Sussex county council-with the weather forecast the way it is, these may be the sunniest I get the closest to!!

See you later in the week and look forward to catching up with all you lovely ladies!!

The Barbour Set

Not only is the Barbour Jacket worn by members of the British Royal Family it is also the essential rainwear for places such as Glastonbury, which of course isn't Glastonbury without mud and never ending rain!!

Alexa Chung in her Barbour Bedale Jacket

Lily Allen and Peaches Geldof in their Barbour Jackets at Glastonbury

In March, I scored an as new, Barbour Bedale Jacket at the boot sale for only £8!! The full retail price is around £180, so I was very pleased indeed!! This is ideal for British weather, but the above photo is only a photo shoot, I'm not wearing this in August and I'm definitely not taking it to Eastbourne! As much as I love it, I can't bear the thought of wearing a rain jacket in August! So with this thought in mind, it was just as well I scored this lovely Barbour Gilet (Vest) last week at the boot sale for £3!! Now this I can bear to wear at the moment, as long as I have a brolly too! Plus, I can wear this under the Bedale in winter as an extra layer!

Of course, the Barbour is an all purpose, all function jacket-when I say all function, Lily is taking this literally by wearing hers as an evening coat!! I love people who rock things their way!

Thrifting, Vintage and Style-My Favourite Thrift Finds

Following on from my previous posts on Thrifting, Vintage and Style, I thought it appropriate to show my favourite items I've thrifted over the last couple of years and proof it can be done if you're prepared to rummage for those bargains!

Outfits first, followed by accessories:-)

Marc Jacobs silk tea dress, Help the Aged, £5

See by Chloe halter dress, Haven House £2.75

70s vintage M&S vest, Help the Aged, around £2 and 7 For All Mankind Jeans, PDSA, £5

Thierry Mugler body con 80s vintage top, Boot sale, 50p and DKNY black dress trousers, Boot sale £1

H&M bandeau dress, Sue Ryder, around £6

Anya Hindmarch vintage silk clutch, Sue Ryder, £3

Topshop brown leather fringed bag, Boot Sale, £1

Cacharel scarf, Cancer Research, £3.25

Gucci vintage shoulder bag, Boot Sale, £6

Missoni scarf, All Aboard, £2

Thrifting, Vintage and Style-Labels to look out for!!

Labels or Love? Well you'll have both, if you thrift hard enough for any of these!!

Haute Couture labels, past and present, include:

Balmain, Balenciaga, Chanel, Christian Lacroix, Christian Dior, Givenchy, Jean Paul Gaultier, Louis Feraud, Nina Ricci, Thierry Mugler, Valentino, Worth and Yves Saint Laurent.

Worldwide Labels include:

Alaia, Alexander McQueen, Bill Blass, Chloe, Claude Montana, Diane Von Furstenberg, Dolce & Gabbana, Emilio Pucci, Escada, Fendi, Giorgio Armani, Gucci, Helmut Lang, Hermes, Herve Leger, Isaac Mizrahi, Issey Miyake, Jil Sander, John Galliano, Karl Lagerfeld, Lanvin, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, Marni, Missoni, Michael Kors, Miu Miu, Moschino, Oscar de la Renta, Prada, Ralph Lauren, Roberto Cavalli, Roland Mouret, Salvatore Ferragamo, Sonia Rykiel, Stella McCartney, Versace, Viktor & Rolf

UK Labels include:

Aquascutum, Betty Jackson, Bruce Oldfield, Burberry, Christopher Kane, Jaeger, Jasper Conran, Jean Muir, John Rocha, Joseph, Julien MacDonald, Katherine Hamnett, Luella, Margaret Howell, Matthew Williamson, Mulberry, Nicole Farhi, Temperley, Vivienne Westwood, Zandra Rhodes

Older Labels include:

Annacat, Biba, Bill Gibb, Body Map, Bus Stop, Gerald McCann, Gina Fratini, Hardy Amies, Janice Wainwright, Jean Varon aka John Bates, Laura Ashley, Marion Donaldson, Mary Quant, Norman Hartnell, Ossie Clark, Pam Hogg, Quad, Quorum, Radley, Patrick Kelly, Stephen Sprouse

USA Labels include:

Calvin Klein, Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Norma Kamali, Todd Oldham, Tommy Hilfiger, Vera Wang, Zac Posen, Zang Toi

Other International Labels of note include:

Alice McCall, Ann Demeulemeester, Cerruti, Christian Francis Roth, Dries Van Noten, Georges Rech, Leonard, Paganne, Martin Margiela, Cacharel, Hugo Boss, Marc Cain, Strenesse, Alessandro Dell'Acqua, Giambattista Valli

Feel free to print this off and take out with you when you thrift and hurrah for any of you who have successfully thrifted any of these labels-definitely worth keeping hold of these beauties!!

Thrifting, Vintage and Style-Hints and Tips

Oh, where to start!! Well, I wanted to share my love of thrifting and vintage with you all, not just by "This is what I thrifted today" but more along the lines of tips, hints and generally anything to do with vintage fashion!!

Firstly, if you like to thrift, I would suggest the best places to go are going to be jumble sales, church or school fetes, charity shops, boot sales, markets, online shopping and ebay. I do appreciate that a lot of people do not have access to charity shops or boot sales on a regular basis-but don't forget to check out new places if you go on vacations, business trips or days out to different towns or cities. Don't forget more closer to home-check out mums or grans wardrobes too-you may be pleasantly surprised!! Also check out my list of favourite websites-I have links to a few good vintage websites!!

Secondly, what to expect? Well, the best tips I can give are:

"Expect the unexpected"
I've often gone thrifting for specific items or a lot of the time a general browse and came home with something that wasn't even on my radar.

"What is a good buy?"
A good buy whilst thrifting is only worth buying if it fits you (or you can get a garment altered), it is a wardrobe basic, it is an original, good condition vintage piece, a one of a kind and most importantly, is within your budget. Ultimately, you do have to love the item too!! I'd rather come home empty handed than with something just for the sake of it! If you can, always try an item on, unless you are totally convinced you don't need to, for whatever reason!!

"If in doubt whilst thrifting-BUY IT"
My most treasured piece of advice I can pass on is this. A vintage piece is unique and one of a kind, so it won't be there tomorrow, like at H&M or Zara. Generally, if you are buying from a charity shop, the price will be low anyway and if you don't like it after all, you are doing a double whammy of buying from the charity shop in the first place and then donating it back again!!

"Quality, not quantity"
I know we all love a full wardrobe, but if an item is totally bang on trend and of low quality, chances are you won't be wearing it again in six to nine months time, let alone a decades time! Thrifting is also an excellent way of bagging a designer name at rock bottom prices-quality is generally assured too. This is the timeless appeal of thrifting for vintage, as it never goes out of fashion and the quality of a garment is generally so much better than high street buys nowadays. If you do go for trends, try to purchase an item that adopts a timeless, chic attitude about it- scarves, blazers, floral dresses, belts, handbags and costume jewellery are great buys which never seem to be out of fashion or style. Will you be in lace or tartan in 9 to 12 months time? Maybe you will or you won't, but try and source an item that will stand the test of time and quality and can be seen again when its next back in trend.

"Check out Ebay"
Ebay is the one stop shop for specific items- 'a black lace vintage dress', 'wide legged jeans', 'navy velvet blazer'-you get my drift!! plus, if you are a label fanatic, then 'Yves Saint Laurent', 'Ossie Clark', 'Chanel' or 'Pucci' are only fingertips away!!! Plus, I've noticed with my own buys that the summer months tend to be the best time to win or buy items at very reasonable prices-maybe because a lot of people are away on vacation and also people tend to sell their things in summer for holiday spends!!

"Have fun by creating your own style(s)"
The great thing about thrifting is you can recreate many different styles-I personally don't have one look, I like to dress in floral vintage one day, modern jeans and top the next, 80s combo the day after!! I think this only leads to building your self confidence as you are not dressing in 'whats in fashion today'-you are showing your individuality, creativeness and developing your own sense of style-for example, Agyness Deyn may not be your cup of tea, but she doesn't follow trends and totally works her own unique, crazy way of dressing!!!

"Be your own Person"
I could ultimately go on to say, look out for lace, tartan, pencil skirts, polka dot dresses, etc-yes, they are all timeless trends that come in and out of fashion, but half the fun is experimenting for yourself and seeing what you come up with! The fun of vintage and thrifting is you never know whats round the corner-try it and see!!