It’s Winter, It’s Cold…What the hell am I going to wear?

Ever since it snowed for the first time this year my style has been on a downward slope. Part of the problem being that I’m not getting rides to work right now, and the bus drops me off two blocks away. First I had to give up my awesome tattoo heels, because I would kill myself in them on the ice, and the new American boots from Walmart only barely resemble the really nice Canadian ones they used to sell. Those were the shit. I can’t find anything else very practical at the moment. Now I also have to make the hard decision every morning between freezing my legs and an extremely unflattering dress pants/sweater combo. I might as well show up in sweat pants and a hoodie the way THAT makes me feel. It really makes me miss working at home, on my cozy couch under a cozy blanket. What’s a girl to do?

Really, it all comes down to layering. What can you add to warm up a dress, especially a vintage style one? Well, what did they wear in the vintage era? Winter didn’t just get invented. They wore girdles, sweaters, and stockings. Full skirts of course are great with a crinoline for looks AND warmth. Spanx are super cozy, while in the summer they just make my butt itch. Then you can always add a tank top/undershirt under whatever shirt/dress you’re wearing. And 50s sweaters are so adorable I don’t know why I don’t own one yet.

On the subject of stockings, they’re actually warmer than you would expect. They’re actually comparable to pants, believe it or not. But they’re a pain to replace every wearing or two because they run all the time. The answer? Fully Fashioned stockings, the kind with the back seam that require garters. They’re made the old fashioned way, and I hear they last for YEARS. I have to get me some of those. Soon.

Speaking of pants, don’t shun them. I avoid them because I feel dumpy in them (yeah, there’s something wrong with me), I don’t find them comfortable, and dresses are just too easy. But I have been looking into 40s and 50s style pants, high-waisted with a wide leg. The wide leg reminds me of some kickass comfy emo pants I had years ago, giant black things with chains. Clearly I am now too old for these. But I really miss how they felt. I’m hoping vintage style pants would feel similar, but the high waist is throwing me off. I’m probably going to check out the mall to see if I can find something I like, but if not, I think I’ll give the pants from Freddies of Pinewood and Heyday a try. Then of course I need some tops and sweaters to go with these pants.

Topping this all off, long coats are handy. It’s a luxury if you can find a long vintage fur coat that doesn’t reek of the early 90s. Vintage coats of all kinds on Etsy are extremely affordable, easily 35-60$. Tall boots are best for pencil skirts, and short fur-lined boots are adorable with fuller skirts. Check out this picture of my meme and her sisters in the 50s. Aren’t they cute? Keep in mind this is one of the coldest cities in the world, so if it’s warm enough for them, they’re warm enough for you, unless maybe you live at the north pole.

Finally, one of my favorite little accessories is the muff. They’re so pretty and so warm. You can get them very affordably on Etsy, and they’re even easy to make. You essentially just sew a pillow, one side the width of the muff, the other side the measurement you need around your hands and arms. Then sew the ends together to form a tube. You can make these in so many ways. Remember the old Clueless episode where Cher started a muff business? You can put pockets on them, cover them in faux fur, and add a rope to hang around your neck. I got a gorgeous one on Etsy a couple years ago that looks like real wolf fur. I’ll have to remember to pull that out tomorrow!

Clearly I have yet to put a dent in my winter shopping list.

Lisa Freemont Street

I know I’ve directed you to Lisa Freemont Street’s Youtube channel before, but I think she deserves some special attention here. As I start learning more about hair, Mike keeps suggesting that I make video tutorials to show people, but the thing is, almost everything I’ve learned I’ve learned from her, so they would just be mediocre copies of her amazing work. That, and I’m way too shy to be putting myself on video. Carefully selected stills only!

Lisa Freemont Street isn’t a trained stylist. She learned all this stuff on her own. It means she’s approaching this stuff the way we do and not as an expert, so she’s great at making things simple enough for even the most inept of us to understand. You’ll be amazed at what you can achieve by watching these. You could even make yourself look like a vintage cartoon character! Oh, and she also has a tutorial for what I know you’ve all been dying to know… how to make pin curls! I love this woman!

Hair isn’t the only thing she’s good at. She also has all kinds of makeup tutorials, product reviews, and mini guides to all things vintage. I’ve been watching her videos for days now, and I intend to watch them all. I may have some good information for you here, but trust me, it’s nothing compared to this. Go to the source and check her out.

Vintage Hair Part 1 – The Haircut

There’s nothing like vintage hair to complete the look of a cute and sexy vintage dress. I’ve always been really low-maintenance with my hair. It’s really fine and doesn’t like to cooperate. As far as vintage hair goes I actually really love the 1930s short bob with finger waves look, but I refuse to get a haircut that short, so I’m learning a lot lately about styles from the 40s and 50s. I’d like to pass on what I’m learning to you.
There are three basic elements to the 40s and 50s style; the haircut, curls, and rolls. These go from easiest to hardest respectively. In this article I’m going to focus on Step 1, the cut, which is the easiest since the stylist would be doing that for you.
Since there was a war going on, 1940s hair tended to be short, rarely past the shoulders. Women showed their support by keeping their hair off the collar as women working jobs in the service. THE haircut of the 1940s was the middy, and most modern haircuts are based from it. This is basically just a cut with layers, a requirement for showing off vintage and rockabilly curls, and a true 40s middy comes in 3 lengths, the longest of which is only 6 inches at its longest point. Rita Hayworth was an exception with a 10 inch version. This looks like rocker hair when worn straight, but it’s the very best cut for curling up into adorable vintage styles. The middy was invented for the versatility required for a number of 1940s hairstyles.
Here are a couple videos by Lisa Freemont Street about the middy and how to style it. She has the very best videos about vintage hair, and has taught me virtually everything I know about how to achieve it. You don’t need to have this exact haircut of course, anything with layers will do. But it’s always valuable to know where the roots (ahem) of a style come from. Enjoy the videos!

Stop Staring!

I just can’t not write a review about Stop Staring!, the brand that produces irresistible vintage-inspired dresses. I’m often asked where I shop, from friends and strangers alike, and I just have to tell you that this is one of my favorite brands, and I’m nuts about it. These dresses will instantly bring you back to the glamour of the 30s, 40s and 50s and allow you to be stylish, classy, and incredibly sexy. There’s just nothing like them.
I have to stop and mention how big a fan I am of dresses in general. People often complain about finding clothes that are comfortable, and for me, mixing and matching separates is a huge pain. I’m all about maximum efficiency. Dresses solve those problems. Throw one on and you’ll immediately look pretty and put-together with hardly a thought, and there’s no question they’re comfier than your skinny jeans. Even a well-selected casual dress will put your style head and shoulders above the rest, since it’s strangely uncommon to see people wearing them these days. I really don’t know why. But I would love to bring them back into every-day wear, and that’s exactly what I plan to do. Stop Staring is going to be one of my no-fail go-to places for these dresses. As seen here and here, many women agree.

I remember discovering this brand about a year ago, but it took me a long time to actually make a purchase. It wasn’t that the dresses were too expensive. Despite being worn by celebrities such as Christina Aguilera, Kat Von D, and Kim Kardashian, and even being featured weekly on The Price Is Right, they’re surprisingly affordable. But damn, it’s just so hard to choose! And I always try to make the very most out of every purchase, so I wasn’t going to jump into it.
Eventually I fell seriously in love with the Lula dress in Eggplant. I agonized over it, because I was so nervous it wouldn’t look good on me. Like many of their dresses it falls just below the knee, and I was worried that this would make me look short. But just after Christmas I went for it, and holy crap am I ever glad I did.

As soon as I put on the Lula it became my favorite dress. It was so incredibly well-made, expertly tailored, so glamorous, and it gave me the most amazing curves! That’s my favorite thing about these dresses. They don’t try to “correct” your curves, they celebrate them with endless adoration. They make you look incredibly fabulous just for being you. For the first time I felt like I had hips, and I loved it. Even our lovely apartment “house mother” Janina was astounded and told me I needed to run out and get more very soon! Consequently these are perfect dresses for larger women. If you’ve ever had a hard time finding clothes that are flattering for your body type, from boyish to hourglass to plus-size, look no further.

The other thing I love so much about them is the ease of their style. They’re sexy, but classy and sophisticated at the same time. They’re vintage inspired, but designed for the modern woman in mind, so you can have an interesting style without any fear of looking like you’re wearing a costume. And they’re perfect for every situation. The number of day-to-night dresses is incredible. They’re great for smart-casual, work, a fun night out, events, everything. And that’s important, because once you try a Stop Staring! dress you’ll want to wear it every day. I sure do. And now I’m waiting to receive the Raileen in blue. Swoon!