From Coral Reef to Teenage Witch: 2012 trend predictions from Judy HQ

Hello vintage fans! It's Kieran, the Vintage Vulture writing to you for the first time in 2012. Cor, isn't this NOVEL?! You're still here, we're still here, nobody has disappeared in a Y2k-style disaster [wasn't that a funny NYE?  Spending the end of '99 waving flashing beanie Millennium-Bugs whilst secretly taking inventory of your canned goods JUST in case you had to hit the bunker come midnight. Just my family? Seriously? Ok then.]

Folks, we should apologise; at a time when the web is bereft with  diets, holiday plans and sunny summer clothes [We haven't been below three layers for months!] our light-hearted chat is a necessity. Taking our snouts out of the Quality Street tin just long enough to type,  [seriously Santa, next year just bring me a nose-bag and a farm-hand to peel them] we thought we'd get back on the blog-horse.

Now, we were going to commence with just how ridiculously amazing our SPITALFIELDS JANUARY SALE was [I saw a woman leave with a Welch-worthy vintage wedding dress for a fiver. Madness!] but then we came across this: -

Lightbulb-headband and candy-pocket aside, it's not too far off the mark. Up-dos? Check. Zips? Check. "Skirts will disappear entirely" - judging by your average episode of TOWIE, check, check check! This got us to thinking, what trends do we think will be big in a not too distant future?

Prepare your notebooks and set phasers to STUNNING as we run through some of 2012's  S/S potentially hot trends....

Sportswear-as-every-wear: Stella makes tracksuits, Ri-Ri wears short-shorts and our wardrobes crumble into 'going for gold.' Olympic fever may be here but there's no need to look like a hemorrhaging rainbow; just like Victoria B, we're turning to tailored vintage Lettermans and satin-y blouses to get the 411 on looking less 118. Adidas head-to-toe a million miles from a podium? Never going to be cool.

Do you see what I sea: Avast Versace, you constant muse. As any landlubber will have spotted, under the sea is in. Think shells and mermaids, sea-weed and reefs - easy to pick up on 50s and 60s dresses [as this sea-bird number above demonstrates] The trick? Channeling 'Ariel' and never 'Auld Gregg' [Disney via Noel Fielding] Boot of Baileys sold separately.

Melissa-Joan <3: Clarissa at one end, Sabrina at the other - Melissa Joan Hart provides the proverbial book-ends to a decade that's back in action.  Noughties to nineties - who would've thought it? Sabrina-worthy velvet, rucksacks and peter-pan collars [A/W] now fade into pastels, tie-die and Clarissa-worthy print. Go easy on the dungarees and accessorize with an annoying younger sibling and presto, you've nailed the trend.

Fearne Cotton, Harry Potter, Blake Lively & Whoopi Goldberg -  now there's a come-dine-with me that we'd like to see! Unifying this motley crew of fictitious wizards and nuns on the run is a penchant for the circular. Perfect for working that Lennon-look, we predict big things for sunnies which measure 360 degrees. Not sure? Draw some on! You'll be left looking hippy-chic in a jiffy [just never leave the house.]

And there we have it folks - more pouring over our crystal ball as the season ticks on! 

xVVx out

www.judysvintagefair.co.uk

Steel-City Chic

The second city we ever visited, we've a soft spot for Sheffield; cooing over shoes on Division Street, Jumanji-style hijinx in the Winter Gardens, the Moses-style water-wall as you leave the station - heck what's not to love.


Holding a fair there TODAY [the Workstation next to the Showroom Cinema, click here for details] we've been out on the streets to meet our people; move over Milan - Sheff got style!

Super-chic indeed. All the fun of the fair to come. 

xVVx

www.judysvintagefair.co.uk

One of my all time top five Favourite Favourite Ebayers.....

I love lists and am a firm believer in the only way something can be appreciated properly is when it is settled firmly within a rank order. So in true High Fidelity style I'd like to share with you one of my all time top five favourite ebayers.......hector081!!! This is not a vintage shop it's just one lady with incredibly good taste parting with some of the most amazing dresses I've ever seen to get the roof of her cottage fixed. I've been watching over the last year and am amazed at the quality and style of some of them.



One of my favourites was this Horrockses gem which sold recently:

And here are a couple that are currently listed:

I would very much recommend any lover of super dooper pretty frocks keeps an eye on this ebayer!

P.S. She also seems to have a very lovely garden!

This week I have mostly.......

Been coveting things I cannot afford and/or do not need. No change there then!! This beaut of a Horrockses dress is from one of my favourite ebay sellers emmapeelpants:If I had the dosh I would certainly make an offer!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280688830235&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:GB:1123

Another one of my favourite ebay sellers who always has the best in twentieth century design is leapinglad, currently has one of my favourite designs ever on offer! Calyx by Lucienne Day:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/vintage-retro-Calyx-fabric-Lucienne-Day-Heals-1950s-/290572281124?pt=UK_Crafts_Fabric_Textiles_SM&hash=item43a7752524

And just for fun, I love this amazing 1950s clock, and I think its a bit of a bargain too! It has a knife and fork for hands!! What more could you ask for!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Vintage-Original-1950s-Frying-Pan-Kitchen-Clock-/230628417277?pt=UK_Collectables_Kitchenalia_RL&hash=item35b2865efd

The Black Swan of the family

Greetings loved ones,

As you read this, one imagines that you find yourselves al fresco, shivering in the British wintertime, in a queue that could give Kate Moss at Topshop or the 80's opening of 'The Empire Strikes Back' a run for its money. The queue I speak of is not for The Affordable Vintage Fair in Leeds, Durham and Newcastle [which take place next weekend. Expect a similar level of enthusiasm however - a camping stool and a thermos could be a must!] but a line at your local picture house, waiting to see Black Swan.

Yes, Aronofsky's tale of one tiny dancer's decent into darkness has the nation and the awards boards solidly gripped. In addition to an intoxicating storyline, stellar performances by golden girls Portman and Kunis and, er, enough explicit content to make even the most liberal amongst us turn a shade of red, another aspect has ruffled some feathers; the costumes. With scores popping the Pilates ball and turning to tutus, ballet has never been so right now - whether working out or out on the town, a pirhouette has never been so acceptable. Created by those Mulleavy sister whizzkids at Rodarte, here's an example of their costume sorcery...

And that's just the beginning. With various controversies and gripes coming from ballerinas and critics around the world, it seems that scandal has also seeped into the House of Rodarte. Nominated for an 'Excellence witihn Contemporary Film' award by the Costume Designers Guild [CDG], it has recently come to light that all credit will lie with costume designer Amy Westcott and not the sisters themselves. Whipping up the fever, once again the Black Swan causes some to see red.

In keeping with our vintage theme, we recently stumbled upon two gorgeous images of fifties creations by Jean Patou and Christian Dior. One light, one dark, the old-school oracle has spoken once more, predicting one of this year's most elegant and enjoyable micro trends; prima ballerina.







When shopping the fairs, look out for lace, ruching, feathers and the theatrical - there are some real bargains to be had. With a strong overlap between retro and the stage, many of our traders feature old-world creations like those above which are perfect for introducing a little bit of drama into your day [as well as being bang on-trend] Never knowing where a piece has been, where it has come from, what it has seen or which boards it has treaded - that's the thrill [frill?] of shopping vintage.

That's all for now folks - more musings next week.

xVVx