The 1940s

OK, so call me fickle, but after watching the film Pearl Harbour again, I may just have fallen in love with another era.  This love is mainly for the fashions and after a lengthy amount of time flicking through Google images, I can safely say, I love it all! Don’t get me wrong, the 1920s still captivates me completely (see The 1920s blog post), but I feel I am allowed to love more than one period in time, right? Or is that classed as cheating?

The 1940s style became more practical in comparison to the 20s, although the silhouettes could be argued to be more feminine, with emphasis on a tiny waist. This practicality of course, is mainly due to the influence that World War II had. The women of the time were pushed to the forefront, especially in terms of employment status.

I think what really gets me, is the hair styles. The set curls, Hollywood waves, clips and hats are truly art-forms in their own right.  I feel some experimenting coming along...

What do you think of this era?  

Designer Consignment – Second Hand Designer Fashion at a Fraction of its Original Price Tag

Recently, I have become obsessed with this kind of shopping experience. After purchasing an immaculate and authenticated Louis Vuitton Speedy 35, in Damier Ebene (A bag I have dreamt of owning for a long time), I am now completely addicted to designer consignment. This kind of establishment can take many names, some examples are; Dress agency, pre-loved store, designer consignment, vintage designer and second hand.

 

This Blog post offers a guide to some of my favourite designer consignment shops. I have found these little gems after hours of trawling the internet, along with looking into any that are advertised in the back of high-fashion glossy magazines (Vogue has a lovely selection of vintage/second hand designer outlets on its back pages).

I have organised the shops into geographical areas, along with detailing some of the better online stores. It is unfortunate for me – living up North – that most of the larger shops are based in London, with only some offering the option to buy online and this is also sometimes limited to a small selection of items they have in stock. Never-the-less, there are still a good selection of stores in more northern territories, especially surrounding the Manchester area. The online shops detailed below have an excellent selection of items. Remember, this is only a small selection, there are many more around the country.

London

Pandora – Knightsbridge www.pandoradressagency.com

The Dresser – Connaught Village www.thedresseronline.co.uk

The South

Secrets – Weybridge, Surrey www.secretsdressagency.co.uk

The North

Elite – Altrincham and Manchester www.elitedressagency.com

Worsley Dress Agency – Worsely, Manchester.

Online

The Dresser Online - www.thedresseronline.co.uk

Champagne and Lemonade – www.champagneandlemonade.com  

High Fashion Society – www.highfashionsociety.com

Of course, these shops are by no means cheap, but I feel the prices are fair and certainly a lot more affordable.

However, if you are looking for a bargain, I once spent an afternoon searching the charity shops on Kensington high-street and found everything from Zara to Prada. Charity shops in the more affluent parts of London are most definitely worth a try, believe me there are bargains to be had.

Have you got any experience of designer consignment? Any shops you think I should know about?

Boots No 7 Day and Night Moisturisers

As I have written about in a previous blog post, I am on a quest for a skin care regime that will halt the aging process for as long as possible!

 It’s hard to know what you should be doing in your mid-twenties in regards to skin care as everyone is different, but I feel having a child and all that entails, along with endless partying during my university days has probably resulted in me having the skin age of a 30 year old, or older!

I figured that, if I start looking after myself now, maybe the ageing process will slow down a little (I can hope!).  This brings me onto to a lovely Christmas gift I received from my brother. The Christmas gift being, Boots’ No 7 Day and Night moisturiser, along with lots of other lovely beauty treats.

Although the creams range from £20-£30, which is at the high-end of the price range I have been focussing on, they can often be bought on 3 for 2 offers or in gift-sets which makes them more affordable.  

I have been using these creams now, for a little over a week and I must say this is the closest yet I have found to my ‘miracle cream’. My skin is most definitely softer and smoother, which makes make-up application a dream. I have also noticed the time in which blemishes take to disappear seems to have decreased significantly.

I have looked at the ingredients and undertaken a little comparison research and found that there is sufficient evidence to support my findings. There is a unique anti-oxidant complex which prevents further damage and supports collagen restructuring. A more interesting set of ingredients is the combination of peptides – including a Lupin seed extract – which aids skin repair and structural protein damage. This would correlate with my thoughts on the speed in which blemishes took to go.

I have also been told the eye serum is worth a try, so I may add this into the mix!

I will continue using these until they run out and let you know if they are still impressing. Have you tried any of the Boots No 7 range?

Lizzie xxx