A whole outfit and look in one fell swoop: red hooded mohair coat with duffel fastening, black beret, black mini-satchel leather handbag, and vintage patent-leather lace-ups, 20p each item from jumble sale in Rottingdean. I’m liking the coat and have worn it several times already despite derision from D – it makes me look like a Sesame Street monster, he says – but the shoes are too big.
February 10, 2010
Red and black
February 9, 2010
Pots and pans
I’ve been collecting old metal cooking pots for a while now, and this winter they have been playing host to hyacinth bulbs. I’ve got pots of marvellously-scented blue hyacinth scattered all over the house now, and finally this collection has been justified. I’m thinking geraniums, next, and getting a proper indoor herb garden going where the slugs and snails can’t sabotage it.
Romantic gestures
D has been hankering after a vintage Hawaiian guitar, and I came close: this poor little ukelele (50p, jumble sale in Ditchling) has only one intact string, only two tuning pegs, and cracks front and back, and will never be playable again, but it does have a lovely logo on its headstock, and is looking very sweet hung up on the wall with the rest of his stringed-things collection. I thought it was a nice romantic gesture for Valentine’s Day, anyway. And we can cuddle up under this paisley feather eiderdown (also 50p, Rottingdean jumble), much prettier than the ones we already have, though I need to sew up a couple of small tears to stop the feathers leaking first.
Working man’s blues
Two very different takes on the male working wardrobe, 50p each at jumble sales this week: vintage Harrods pin-striped double-breasted suit, probably ’60s, and navy cotton overalls for that blue-collar hillbilly look. The overalls have a ’50s cardboard label still attached and a ticket indicating that they were made by a ‘colonial outfitters’ in Hong Kong, which dates them a bit. 50p each item; I think I’ll donate the overalls as stagewear for our banjo-pickin’, washboard-scrapin’, stamping and hollering friends the Curst Sons.
Casual menswear
A man can hardly go wrong with the classic checked shirt and jeans combination; press-stud cotton cowboy shirt, Engineered Levis plus Diesel jacket, 20p each, from Rottingdean jumble sale. D’s keeping the shirt but both denim items were too big and baggy for his liking. Into my boot-sale bag… I feel a clear-out coming on, partly prompted by a scary assessment of the contents of the garage. How did I accumulate so much junk? Well, just read back a few pages here and all is explained.
Cheap and sparkly
Dusty pink Primark skirt with more than a hint of tutu to it, black top with gathers around the neckline and shoulders, and very tacky gold and black sequinned 80s cocktail dress (not for me); 20p each, jumble sale in Rottingdean. The skirt’s a bit silly on me , and will also be rehomed, but, as ever whenever I think about wearing something a little more flamboyant, the item I end up wearing most is the plain black thing.
Vintage-style glamour
I can make like a vintage Hollywood starlet in this long cream dress with flared skirt and skinny belt (’80s Monsoon, 50p from Ditchling jumble sale), or black H&M halterneck prom dress and short but full-sleeved kimono (20p each, jumble in Rottingdean). Or maybe not.
Summer staples
From jumbles in Rottingdean and Ditchling – two well-to-do villages – came a few staple items for the summer. I keep trying to find the perfect plain denim skirt and the perfect lightweight black cotton skirt: perhaps this stretchy straight-cut Dorothy Perkins denim and the slightly A-line black M&S one with a bit of a flare to the hem will fit the bill (20p each). Or at least serve in the meantime. The white cotton camisole (20p), striped Nicole Farhi T-shirt (short and wide, good layered over a longer vest; 50p) and cropped jeans (el cheapo, some supermarket label I can’t identify; 50p) should prove useful too.
Warm and woolly
Felt a need for some warm, soft footwear – that wooden floor’s a bit cold – but had baulked at paying the £10 for a pair of slipper-socks now asked in Kensington Gardens (they were £4.50, last time I bought a pair). Good job I found these – brand-new, unworn – for 20p at a jumble in Rottingdean, then. And yes, they’re toasty. Bought this sleeveless hand-knitted granny cardie for the buttons, too, though they’re actually too big for the garment I had in mind. Oh well.
February 2, 2010
Soldiering, Swedish style
Trust the Swedes to have well-designed, warm army jackets. This one (‘Mats Larsson’, says the label) has a full sheepskin inside the waterproofed khaki cotton, the thickest, fluffiest high neck, and overlapping lapels and panels to ensure no Arctic wind blows in. D bought it – after much deliberation – for £40 at the Brighton Marina car boot sale on a bitterly icy morning, and has smugly noted the jealous glances this week since. It’s even snugger than his sheep-lined leather Russian submariner’s coat, and that’s saying something. I want one now too.
