Discovered

Discovered upon reading Antler magazine's just released 'Vintage' edition is this fabulous collection of 1950s Kodachrome shots owned by Chicago based photographer Elliot Burlingham. Apparently these transparencies were rescued from a garbage bin and now Elliot is offering a selection of prints for sale on Etsy, with loads more to come.

For photos that were on the fast track to the tip, these are in amazing condition, and the saturated colours are truly dazzling. I love the deep blues of the water and the sky, as well as the natural beauty and summer retro goodness of the pretty ladies.

Check out Antler for an interview with Elliott and lots of other vintage related joy.

Store Love: Mint Condition Expands North

Sydney's vintage stores are concentrated in the Eastern Suburbs and Inner West so imagine my delight - now that I'm back north of the Bridge again - to hear that Rozelle's treasure trove Mint Condition, has just opened a second store in Mona Vale (Shop 3, 8-10 Waratah Street).

I popped into the Rozelle store last Sunday and was delighted by the feast of colourful party and day frocks on offer, as well as the impressive collection of accessories, with loads of dainty purses and shiny baubles on display. Although the betrothed and I are currently living on a wing and a prayer (hello wedding and doctors fees), when I'm feeling a bit more flush I will definitely be checking out the new store.

In the meantime, here are some favourite picks via store owner Wendy.

That fabric bag has me in paroxysms of want, and how on trend and simply gorgeous is the black lace wiggle dress? Great for one of the Sterling Cooper wives on Mad Men.

You can check out Mint Conditions Facebook fan page here.

Hat of the Week

Isn't singer Paloma Faith all kinds of awesome? Her hat, her hair and those long, long black gloves; the lady is a fox.
Paloma is pictured here attending the Love Ball in London, hosted by Harper's Bazaar and supermodel Natalia Vodianova.
Natalia looked pretty darn foxy herself, representing for love in a bright shade of Valentine, courtesy of Louis Vuitton.

Love Lover

There are few Aussie labels that make me salivate season after season as much as Lover does. While their prices are generally beyond my book publicist's salary, I'm lucky enough to own two items: one is a beautiful white lace blouse from one of their earliest collections (as worn by Abbie Cornish in the final scene of Candy) and the other is a one-piece swimsuit from their last S/S collection which I pretty much wore every single day of my January break.

Though generally I'm a big fan of colour, there is something about Lover's muted tones, the quality of their fabrics, and the little flattering details, that keep me permanently in lust. Their new A/W 2010 collection is entitled The Harvest and the look is a bit Sloane from Ferris Bueller's Day Off meets Little House on the Prairie. I would have looked awesome in most of these pieces strolling into a high school house party in 1993. Now I just really, really hope those divine high-waisted khaki pants go on sale at some stage. They'd look great with a pink and pretty vintage blouse.

BAFTA Beauties: What Goes Around Comes Around

Not only did Carey Mulligan pick up the Best Actress gong at yesterday's BAFTA's, she also picked up best dressed in my eyes, wowing me with her old school Hollywood glam. The dress is Vionnet and the long over skirt and train in arresting black and white recalls Audrey's iconic Givenchy ballgown from Sabrina. There is something perennially chic about black and white (done right), something Audrey demonstrated again when clothed in Cecil Beaton for My Fair Lady. Fashion fans probably sound like broken records when they gush about Audrey's influence on style, but when you see Carey looking so drop dead gorgeous - sporting a chic blonde pixie cut no less - then you can see why commentators harp on so.

I gushed over this pink Lanvin frock at Christmas time, so imagine my excitement to see the ever elegant Audrey Tatou working it to perfection on the BAFTA's red-carpet. I love how she has accessorised with red shoes and bag.

Erbaz's IT girl excellence since he's been at the helm of Lanvin got me thinking about the overall fabulousness of Lanvin present and past. From the 1920s to the 1950s and into the new millennium, this beloved French brand always has me in thrall. The brown and yellow dress is currently up for sale at Kerry Taylor's auction house. Now if only I had a spare $1200 lying around ...

And from old-school glamour to British cutting edge, I just had to post Romola Garai's eye-popping Erdem bouffant because it is just so darn pretty. Perhaps not quite formal enough for an event like the BAFTA's, but snaps to her for plugging a new designer, and all with a beautiful smile on her face.

Thanks to Getty Images and Red Carpet Fashion Awards for the pics.

A wedding to warm a vintage heart

I spotted this adorable Sydney wedding over at Real Wedding Ideas. Jessica and David brought vintage touches to their wedding to make it a really special event. The bride's dress is a vintage cocktail length frock purchased from Grandma Takes a Trip and altered to suit, and the bridesmaid wore a dashing electric blue pre-loved number from Coco Repose.

The bride's crinoline looks a treat and the cake topper is super sweet. The photographer for this wedding was Marzena Wasilewska and you can check out loads more pics over at her blog. There are some great up close and personal images of Jessica's dress and her great victory rolls hairstyle.

I'm so excited that my dear friends Lee and Sebastian from sebastian T photography are shooting my wedding as a gift. Lucky, lucky me. And I hope I scrub up just as lovely as this vintage inspired bride did.

Frock of the Week: Vintage YSL

Apologies for my absence over the last week. I went away for a few days to attend my work sales conference and the country resort I was in had a distinct lack of broadband access. Tough times indeed.
Meanwhile I'm catching up on my favourite blogs, best dressed and NY fashion week coverage now, and I came across the ever stylish Maggie Gyllenhaal looking fresh and lovely in this vintage YSL frock at an Oscars luncheon. I was excited to hear she has been nominated for Best Supporting Actress this year, as Maggie is always a standout on the red-carpet.
Love this shade of green and her long bob is too cute for words. She and Peter Saarsgard make such a gorgeous acting couple. They are up there with Naomi and Liev whom I was thrilled to see make out RIGHT IN FRONT of me in Bondi when I was still living there. One of my few Bondi celebrity sightings, but it was a good 'un.

Loveliness: Lena Hoschek

A couple fellow bloggers astutely posted pics of German designer Lena Hoschek's A/W 2010 collection, which was shown at Berlin Fashion Week last month. There are few current designers that have me salivating for every item in their collection, but Lena's collection did just that. I WANT this blouse.

I was prompted to check out her website for more retro inspired loveliness; Lena draws inspiration from rockabilly culture, pin-up girls and Hollywood stars. Her designs truly are catnip to the vintage lover.
Anyway, I completely fell in love with her S/S 2010 collection too, which draws heavily on Polynesian/Hawaiian dress and includes items that would look thoroughly gorgeous on guests at my upcoming wedding. If only I could dress them all ... ha ha!

Don't you love the Elvis does Hawaii print? And that swimsuit is a dream.

You can check out the A/W collection on the German Vogue site.

And for the rest of the S/S collection, visit Lena's website.

A vintage cocktail party and a new purchase

The Sydney Antique Centre's vintage clothing concession threw a lovely little Valentines Day soiree for their loyal customers today. Apparently staff were up until 2am creating the luscious treats on offer, including shortbread with berries and cream and delicious chocolate brownies.

The vintage clothing section at the Centre was launched only a few months ago and provides retro living guys and gals with a whole little "street" of vintage wares from a number of collectors. I've been very restrained this summer and have bought little new (old) clothes or new (new) clothes, come to think of it. But bolstered by yummy treats and egged on by fellow frock lovers, I tried on a few pieces and eventually bought this 1960s shift. It features a very pale pastel print, a low V-neck back and pretty bow features on the sleeves. It is also in great nick and comes with its original belt. I think it's the perfect little frock for the office.

Concession holder Lou Murray Vintage offers wonderful cocktail and evening frocks, including the ones shown here, + a great selection of coats for the coming winter. The lovely Amanda from Coco Repose tried on a to die for 60s swing coat that would be perfect for jumping in and out a convertible.

Grant from Libertine Jewels has an impressive selection of sparkly bits and one-of-a-kind bags,

including a highly collectible Enid Collins wooden box purse.

And the Coco Repose girls keep a concession in the Centre that is delightfully colour coordinated and packed with feminine and frilly goodies. They have a fantastic 1950s Mexican circle skirt on their rack at the moment, but alas it didn't quite fit and my pile of "to be altered" items almost needs its own wardrobe.

If you are feeling low between Vintage Fair fixes, the Sydney Antiques Centre offers a mini version that can easily tide you over. Perhaps just leave the credit card at home.

A trip down memory lane for the Spring/Summer advertising campaigns

In our post post modern world it seems almost everything is derivative, but that doesn't mean that a homage done well can't fill with delight.

It is almost spooky how much model of the moment Karlie Kloss looks like Lauren Bacall in the Dior S/S 2010 ad campaign. I love the use of shadow and her perfectly coiffed hair. These pics also got me thinking of the other 2010 fashion campaigns I've spied that have tipped their hats to the past.

Super Claudia Schiffer channels Grace Kelly on the French Riviera - where she met her Prince, no less - in the latest Salvatore Ferragamo campaign.

And Karl Lagerfeld proves his mettle as a photographer as well as a designer having shot, in the streets of Buenos Aires, the latest Chanel campaign himself. If it wasn't for the brief length of the skirts and Claudia's long, long hair, this could be a romantic travel adventure in the 40s or 50s. I LOVE the first shot in the doorway (thanks Liana).

And is that Mrs Robinson or is it Carolyn Murphy getting cosy with young actor Nicholas Hoult? Lets presume the reason she is naked - apart from a wicked bouffant and a heavy lashing of black eye-liner - is because she's hoping to get lucky tonight.

This is the 2010 Tom Ford eye wear campaign and seriously, who would have thunk that the awkward little kid from About A Boy would grow up to be so darn beautiful?

And while it is a bit off topic, I feel compelled to tag this amazing post I read on Jezebel yesterday about a recent CFDA seminar on the health of fashion models. The comments by a number of the attendees are frightening, but hardly surprising. I am so happy to see 'mature' models like Claudia and Carolyn still successfully booking campaigns, but the reality is that there are thousands of girls in the industry who will never reach that stratosphere and who are forced into extreme actions to fit the modelling sample size. And unfortunately that sample size continues to shrink. In the 80s and 90s - when I first started hoarding Vogue - models were out of this world beautiful, but their weight resembled something that might be achievable for a small selection of genetically blessed adults. These days there is barely a genetically blessed child that could be that thin.

With the death of McQueen and the frightening thinnification of (mostly) teenage models, there is a lot to be sad about today. I think I need some happy time with one of my Marilyn or Audrey DVDs.