A vintage outfit from Dandelion Vintage on the new show Pan Am

In August I sold 40+ pieces of clothing, lingerie and jewelry to the costumers for the new ABC show Pan Am. I thought it would be later in the season before I spotted any of my clothing, but in episode 2, you can catch a very quick glimpse of a red cotton halter top and skirt from my website http://www.dandelionvintage.com/

Above are two screne grabs of the scene - the co-pilot takes a gal back to his Paris hotel room - and also a photo of the outfit from my website.


Very exciting! I'm looking forward to spotting more of my pieces. Pan Am airs on ABC Sunday nights.

Winona Ryder and the envy-inspiring clothing in 'When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story'

Sunday night (after my team won this week's leg of The Amazing Race!) - 'When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story' aired. It was a made for tv movie about the woman who started Al-Anon. OK, so I only started watching it because there was nothing else on, and the melodrama kind of drug on and on. But, the clothing was fabulous! Many cute 1920s cloche hats and great dresses. Even when they were poor and struggling she had some sweet dresses.
The movie starts in the late Teens and the bulk of it is in the 1920-30s. They start off with a good income and fancier clothing, but end up poor and in kind of plain clothing - no glamorous bias gowns in the 1930s time period of the movie - but I realized that I enjoyed the everyday clothing probably more than glamour gowns because that's what the average person was really wearing during that time. The costume designer for the movie was Trysha Bakker.
And Winona looks great, not just in the clothing, she looks like she is aging very little and doing it naturally. Her face looks real is what I mean. Plus she is still like a Pixie-Woman. When you see her with other women she still seems smaller and younger.

Olympic 'Fashion' and Curling can be fun

I'm more of a Summer Olympics fan I guess. I like the gymnastics, swimming, diving, volleyball etc. But I have been catching some of the Winter Olympics and realize now that I've been missing some cool stuff. The skiing and snowboarding is scarey, which makes it good to watch. I saw that gal take that huge spill in the skiing. Ouch. I mean she really slammed down that hill. And she got up and competed the following night too.
One difference between the Summer and Winter Olympics  is the 'Fashion' - if you can call it that. Now, there's not much to say about Misty May and Kerri Walsh's 'uniforms' other than how they seem to get smaller with each Olympics. But Winter means the need for more fabric, which results in more interesting gear.
The snowboarding uniform is the most notable "I don't get it". I mean, I do get it, it's supposed to be Trendy, Hipster. OK. Big baggy fake jeans that seem to be fallling off of the boys while they compete. They're not as baggy on the girls, but still odd. Then they also wear these obnoxiously plaid tops. I love plaid, but this plaid is just obnoxious.


These guys almost make Curling look cool and fun. No, not really. Although the pants are cool. The only time Curling has looked fun was when the Beatles played it in Help.

"A Fiendish Thingy"

Lastly was this Czech Figure skater, who was wearing a vintage-like costume. I liked it and he was cute. Of course when you get up close (which you can't in this photo because it is so tiny) you can see that the stripes on the shirt are sequinned. I think it's a law that you must have sequins on your skating costume or else they knock off points.

I have to find this cute Mad Men blouse before next Summer!

I'm watching Season 1 of Mad Men, and I spotted this sweet blouse in the episode where Betty and the kids go to Cape May (yeah Jersey Shore!)

Blue, buttons down the back, with seahorses and fish - but it's the seahorses that got my attention - looks like they are embroidered.

Must have it!

Livin' The Low Life

Cool show about guys who are serious about cool cars.

Stylista - You must watch (It is so horrible)

How did I get sucked into watching this show? I'm not sure, channel surfing and something obnoxious and bitchy must have caught my eye, I guess.
It's about a bunch of 12 years olds - ok, they actually are in their 20s, but they think they know it all and not many of them have mentality, maturity or life experiences beyond that of a 12 year old - they are trying to win the position of a junior style editor at Elle magazine. Jerry Hall, oh no wait, I don't know who that is, the Queen of Elle I guess - is the bitch on wheels judge. I hope she is 'acting' because no one in real life could have a 'personality' like that.

They do little competitons like preparing a pretty breakfast for the Queen of Elle, doing mock fashion mag layouts etc. and of course each week someone gets the boot. There are some really annoying personalitites on this show. Young people - nothing against the average young person, but this crowd are 'those young people' who think they are the coolest shit on Earth and that they have lived through it all and they know it all, and no one can tell them otherwise.
Megan is the resident arrogant bitch, and she has a snippy gay sidekick. Someone gave her a 'load of money' to open her own shop a few years ago, but to her that was 'boring' she wanted to do something where she could 'use her brain'. There's the token 'nice fat girl' who you know the producers threw in there to show a 'range of real people' beyond skinny bitches. She is nice though and I like her. Kate is the spoiled bratty girl with big boobs, who cried during the first episode because everyone told said her cleavage was innapropriate for the workplace. Plus there is a cool English guy and my pick for the winner is Ashlie who is at war with Megan.

It's so ridiculous and bitchy. So far I love it!


911 for a panic attack? Please, girl. If he can't handle a competition, how could he possibly handle the real job? Of course he got the boot - there is no crying in fashion.

Runnin' with the rainbow unicorn

Little Yellow Bird

I was eating cereal on the porch this morning and I spotted a yellow bird trying to eat out of the hummingbird feeder. Whenever I see a yellow bird out in the yard, I think of this song - Angela Landsbury singing 'Goodbye Little Yellow Bird' in the Picture of Dorian Gray.

Happy 100th Birthday Bette!

I posted about Bette's 99 birthday last year, so I have to post for her 100th Birthday this year!









I had to include the Sailor outfit photo again! (you know, because I'm obsessed with sailor clothing)

Rock Rocks-it again!

You know that I love the doggies, and every year I watch Westminster's Dog Show. I have so many favorites, but you know that it's all about the Bulldog - hey-hey-hey! Cherokee Legend Rock represented the Bulldogs at Westminster for the 2nd year in a row. He came in 2nd place in the Non-Sporting Group (behind a frou-frou poodle ((rasberry))
If you check out their website, you can see videos of the individual breed judging which is a great way to see a bunch of your favorite breed. The bulldogs are so fun to watch, they have such great attitudes when they walk - http://video.westminsterkennelclub.org/player/?id=216270

Blogging Project Runway has photos up of the 5 designer's shows last week at Fashion Week. Yes, of course I looked. I like spoilers and this doesn't spoil anything, because we don't know the final 3 yet. I'm going to hold off on my opinions until the show really airs and I can see the outfits moving. Sometimes they look so different on the move than in still photos. I have to say that I was surprised at Chris' collection, kind of Goth for him. I didn't like the monkey-looking fur he was using to trim some of the pieces though. I'll also say, boy does Christian love ruffles!

http://bloggingprojectrunway.blogspot.com/2008/02/final-collection-polls.html

Welcome back Project Runway 4

Finally, the wait is over! It's time to bitch my way through fresh episodes of Project Runway again!
Heidi and Tim have been raving about this season's designers being the 'best' ever. I wonder if they meant the best 'designers' or the best 'drama queens' because it looks like this season's crowd are a bunch of divas. I love the drama, the egos, the hissy fits, the wacky behavior etc. - but I don't like it when it gets in the way of the real competition.
I was disappointed that they didn't do the 'Road to the Runway' episode this year. I like seeing how they choose the designers to be in the show. Instead they jumped right into the competition and for the first episode they took the designers to the Fashion Week park and made them run across a field to tents that were set up and stocked with beautiful fabrics from Mood. I loved it when the tattooed gal named Sweet P took off her wedge heels as soon as Heidi said they were going to have to run! They had to grab the fabrics they wanted, and then go back to the studio and make a dress that represented them as a designer.
The winner, to the left here, was Rami, who designed an amazingly draped silk dress, and I liked the flower even though Michael 'I think it vulgar' Korrs didn't. Bravo's Project Runway website kind-of improved their website photos - instead of the small runway photos that they've had in the past, they are now larger, usually badly posed photos of the garments. Two other favs of mine last night was Steven's suit and Christian's Plaid Jacket and shortened Hobble-style skirt. Simone got the boot because her dress was poorly made and unfinished. I really liked the color of her hair and her dark eyebrows (weird I know, but I'm currently thinking of changing my haircolor/style)
I didn't really like Marion's dress with that jagged style hemline, it reminded me of what Jeffrey did last year again and again (still not a Jeff fan) The 80s style orange bubble-skirt with pockets wasn't a fave either.
Now onto Elisa. The shot of Tim watching her put grass stains (yes, I said grass stains) on white fabric during the fabric grab in Bryant Park was priceless! She's a very artsy, free spirit kind of gal. Think of Angela and Santino combined (creativewise) and I think you can get an idea of Elisa's creative process. She made a turquoise fitted gown that looked fairly good from the front (except for the scrunched turquoise boots that she paired with it) but in the back she had a 5ft+ train of shreaded chunks of fabric that her model tripped over on the runway.

I was very happy with the episode and I can't wait until next week!

Must read Project Runway related blogs -
Blogging Project Runway
Manola's Shoe Blog
Project Rungay

3 Vintage dresses for me

I bought a few cute dresses for myself on ebay recently. I know, they're Summer dresses, it'll be 6 months before I can wear them, I should be buying Fall stuff! But they were too cute to pass up and the weather is still too warm here in NJ to think about sweaters.

- First is a pink and white gingham cotton with inset strips and flat fabric tabs along the top.
- Next is an unusual Swirl dress that I bought from dexterdoggie - It has an overlapped bodice with shoulders that tie. There is elastic on the back of the waist with 2 buttons to hold it shut. It is a little snug on the waist, so I need to trim down an inch or so to wear it by next Summer. Swirl dresses are great if you can get them, super comfortable to wear.
- Third is a great blue on white toile print cotton dress. It was unworn with tags, super lightweight cotton. The print is just really great and the front of the skirt has great folding.




Those first 2 pictures are crooked! I wonder if it was me or the mannequin that was lopsided!

So, Dumbledore is gay, how about that. Maybe the purple velvet suit should have been a giveaway. I bet the fanfic writers are going wild writing about the exploits of his youth!

Heroes - they are off to a slow start. The momentum of last season isn't there yet. I like the Molly/Mohinder/Matt story, and Matt's Dad being the nightmare man, and Nathan being all dark and brooding and a little bit scruffy (it looks good on him) Peter off in the land of amnesiacs and bad Irish accents is really dragging and I'm unsure of Hiro in the past yet.

Mad Men - I tried hard not to fall for you, but I got pulled right in. Now I'll be missing you until next season. Peggy, now that is some serious denial! What a surprise. I mean, you thought she was pregnant, but I couldn't believe it when the nurse walked in with a baby!

Tim Gunn, what happened there? I saw 3 episodes, and each was rerun about 20 times each. Hopefully they are off revamping the show because I'd really like to see it succeed. First thing they need to do is drop the model, she has no personality. They should have a different co-host every week. I saw a rerun of the finale of season 2 of Project Runway last week and I am SO looking forward to the new season, which starts sometime in November.

Diners, Drive Ins & Dives

So, my new favorite show (besides Doctor Who and until Heroes returns) is 'Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives' from the Food Channel. It's this guy who travels around to diners, and he checks out their food, watching them cook on the grill and in the kitchens of the diners, preparing the best dishes from their menu.



I like the show because Guy Fieri is kinda cool and funny. He says things like 'that's off the hook' and 'that's money' when he taste tests the food. I like old fashioned mom & pop diners with homestyle cooking - Places that have been in business for generations, with the same menus, same old fashioned way of cooking. I like looking at food, and I mean real food, not a tiny piece of pink raw meat in the center of a plate with a sprig of green leaf and orange sauce drizzled on top of it. I mean a big heaping piled-up plateful of food like burgers, fries, steaks, breakfast dishes, and homebaked desserts. Yummy. Just fun.

Vogue March 1st, 1934

I'm back from my mini Labor Day Vacation, trying to squeeze a few more days out of Summer. If you have a chance to go to the beach in September - Go! During the week, everyone is at work, school, college etc, the beach is nearly empty and the weather and the water is spectacular (especially at the Jersey Shore)
I had to force myself to get back into my regular work schedule, and try to keep from thinking about going back to the beach this Saturday! This morning I made a small vintage stock purchase, mostly lingerie and a few other items. No pictures though, my dad took my camera to the Hot Rod Shop.
Last night I went through an old Vogue magazine from 1934, and scanned a few interesting photos. To the left and right here are examples of how I'm going to dress this Fall. This is the look that I was to emulate. Yeah. I'll be in jeans and t-shirts. But if I could, this would be how I'd dress everyday, even though I spend most of the day at the computer.

The next 3 scans were part of an interesting layout that featured sketches of designers at work. First is Schiaparelli, then Chanel, and lastly Molyneux. They mention that 'Youth' is Chanel's credo and Captain Molyneux is the 'champion of simplicity'.




Next is an ad that previews some of the new shoes styles from I. Miller. I'll take one of each pair, sz6-1/2B please.

Vogue used to have several pages of ads for dog breeders in the magazine, and info on a featured breed. The breed in this issue is the Newfoundland, and this is a super cute photo from the story. And it just so happens that we used to have Newfoundlands, before bulldogs. And before the Newfs we had Bassets. Bear, Challie and Buddy were our Newfs. Bear had a litter of pups a few weeks before we went on vacation one year. We packed them all up and took them to the shore with us! We put up a little wire pen in the backyard, and put the pups in there. The neighbor would come over and play with them, leaving a note saying 'Took 2 pups home to play with' Free babysitting! We were lucky no one stole them. That was 20+ years ago though, I wouldn't do that today. But I guess most people would have been afraid of two 150+ pound dogs.


This ad on the left, I just really liked the drawing of the pretty lady. I love those wavy hairstyles from the 1930s and I wish that I had the patience to try to copy a style like that. Think Betty Davis in the 30s with the hair all smooth on top and curled on the sides. Then sometimes in the movies, the side curls would come loose and hang down in their face, and they would just flip it back and the hair would magically be perfect again!

I'm interested in old/former clothing shops in and around the New Jersey and Philadelphia area, and I like to try to find out the history of them. Unfortunately, I usually don't find out much about smaller mom & pop type clothing shops. This fun looking ad caught my eye in this Vogue and has me wondering about Ada's Unusual Knitted Clothing. I like the cute drawing and now I'd love to find a piece of her clothing.

So, did you watch Tim Gunn's new fashion makeover show last night? There's not much you can do to change the format of a makeover show, but I thought it would be a bit more entertaining of a makeover with Mr. Gunn. I guess it's necessary to have a sidekick so that they can have fashion banter back and forth, but I would have preferred Tim on his own, or with someone other than a model. Especially Veronica Webb, who to me, has always had a 'superior intellect' kind of attitude. The show was good, I'll be watching it again, but the first episode didn't really have anything to rave about other than Tim's reaction to the suggestion of tights and ballets flats (apparently he doesn't like them!) Who was that guy with the garbage bag and the funhouse mirrors? I hope they don't make him a regular part of the show, that was just corny. More Tim, less graphics and less other people.

I tried not to get hooked into watching Mad Men on AMC, but over the weekend, I had a sick day and watched a marathon of episodes. So I guess I'm hooked now, darn it. Not just on the fun vintage clothing, but the people stories too. I have a crush on Draper even though he's not really likeable, he's the kind of guy that I would avoid, and I'm cheering on the mousey girl for some reason. I want to be the redhead, not slutty, but all curvy and squeezed into a secretary dress!

Just some fun for Doctor Who fans

(That's David Tennant asking the question and Capt. Jack from a previous season of Doctor Who - gosh he's handsome!)

Bette, The Gilmore Girls, Sir Laurence and other chatter

So last night was the last episode of The Gilmore Girls. Good. Good ridance. No, actually I did feel a little sentimental about the show ending, even though I've spent the last year or so complaining that it was no longer as good of a show as it used to be. I'll miss Richard & Emily, Paris and Luke and everyone in Star's Hollow, except maybe for the Gilmore Girls themselves, because I'm still mad at them for becoming selfcentered and immature. Boy, Rory sure got over Logan fast. Good, I never liked him. Why didn't she realize he was just like Christopher?
Rory's other ex-boyfriend Jess, is now on my new most favorite show ever - 'Heroes' which airs it's last show of the season next Monday. It will be a long Summer waiting for new episodes of that show which is so well written, so unexpected and exciting and man do they have a great looking cast of guys! (oops, my girlishness is showing) It reminds me of the early days of the X-Files (now my geekiness is showing) when every episode was fresh and the writing was good and the actors were enthusiastic and appreciated being on a good show. Then the writing became lazy and self indulgent and the actor's bad attitudes showed in their performances totally spoiling the show during the last 2 years of it. Man, why do I watch tv? Well, at least SpongeBob never disappoints.

Oh yeah, there's Bette up there. Today I received a copy of her 1962 autobiography The Lonely Life - that I bought used on amazon. Even though I'm only about 40 pages into it, I think it is now my new life manual. I want to be Bette Davis! I want to live by her philosophy of life - well, maybe I shouldn't make that commitment so soon, maybe I should finish the book first. I'll let you know if I'm still devoted to the Goddess Bette and her words of wisdom by the end of the book.
Yesterday, one of the old movie channels celebrated Sir Laurence Olivier's 100th birthday (even though it wasn't actually his birthday yet) and they showed his movies all day. I must confess having a bit of a crush on him in his earlier roles. I was working though, so totally missed watching 'Pride & Prejudice' during the marathon, even though I must say I kind of prefer Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy after seeing that version a few years ago. I did watch 'Wuthering Heights' yet again (after The Gilmore Girls finale) I remember some reporter asking Johnny Depp many years ago, I think he was dating Winona Ryder at the time, if he was romantic. And he said something like 'yeah, I've watched Wuthering Heights five times' and I remember thinking, what a dumbass, there's nothing romantic about Wuthering Heights. It's a tragic story about two people who wasted and destroyed their lives out of greed, spite and anger. So they died and were finally reunited to be happy? That's not romantic, I'll pass on that kind of romance, Thank you. But I love the movie anyway! It's still a great story, just don't say it's a romantic love story or you'll make me mad!

So I'll finish this mish-mosh of a post by showing off another purse that I made. This was the 2nd set of wooden purse handles that I had snatched from a load of vintage. It took me a while to settle on what fabric I wanted to use. This is one of my most favorite pieces of old fabric and I had a hard time getting myself to cut it. I'm not sure what the original piece was for, either a runner for a table or bureau and it was backed with a muslin lining, so it did make a very easy purse with lining already included. I broke down and cut the fabric and I still have a piece of it left over to display among my other favorite fabrics. I really like the way the purse came out and it goes with alot of what I wear too. You know, black, and jeans.
Mish-mosh reminds me of a district manager that I had when I worked in a clothing store, many years ago. She'd come out of the bathroom, all 'fueled' up and ready to work. I remember her saying 'mish-mosh' all the time among other rantings, screaming and cursing - in the store - in front of customers. Once she yelled 'what is this mish-mosh' and totally flipped over a round rack full of clothing. Thankfully she only came to the store once or twice a month. And thankfully I no longer work in a store. I'm a tough boss though, and I do curse at myself sometimes!

Happy 100th Katharine Hepburn

'We're going to talk about me? Oh Goody' - May 12th would have been Katharine Hepburn's 100th birthday, so since I saluted Ms. Davis on her 99th birthday last month, it's only fair that I salute my other favorite ballsy gal too.
So my favorite Katharine Hepburn movies are 'Bringing Up Baby' with Cary Grant and 'The Philadelphia Story' with Cary again and with Jimmy Stewart. I also like 'Stage Door' although I wish that movie had been more of a comedy than a drama. If you make a movie with Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Lucille Ball and Eve Arden in the cast you'd think that it would be a snappy, biting, smart-assed movie with those 4 gals. Not that it doesn't have it's smart-assed moments, but it was supposed to be a drama with just a light funny side. Also, the late 1930s clothing in that movie was fantastic! I also like 'The Lion in Winter' - 'Rooster Cogburn' and 'African Queen'.
Just like when I was young and saw Phil Donahue interview Ms.Davis, I saw his interview with Ms. Hepburn too and thought 'who is this cool old lady?' What was funny about that interview was that Donahue spent who knows how long interviewing her, and at the end he asked for her autograph, and she said 'ok, what was your name?' He was in a huff because she didn't know his name. Well, she's Katharine Hepburn, she needn't bother herself with trifles like remembering names of insignificant reporters.
Another great interview she did was with Dick Cavett, and if you ever get the chance to see this on one of the old movie channels or to buy/rent the DVD - The Dick Cavett Show - Hollywood Greats - you should. She's comes off as very independant and confident, just like Ms. Davis, and it's funny that they were both born the same time, and both had New England upbringings. Kate's father was a doctor who wanted to educate people about venereal disease during the early 1900s when that was just not discussed by 'proper' people. Her mother fought for women's right to vote and for making birth control information available to women. There's not an actress around today that I find as interesting as Ms. Hepburn, none of them have that enduring quality.

Some quotes from Kate -

'Acting is the most minor of gifts and not a very high- class way to earn a living. After all, Shirley Temple could do it at the age of four'

'Enemies are so stimulating'

'Plain women know more about men than beautiful ones do.'

'Life is to be lived. If you have to support yourself, you had bloody well better find some way that is going to be interesting. And you don't do that by sitting around wondering about yourself.'

'Life is hard. After all, it kills you.'

'We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers - you can blame anyone but never blame yourself. It's never your fault. But it's always your fault, because if you wanted to change, you're the one who has got to change. It's as simple as that, isn't it?'



Here's a clip from 'Bringing Up Baby' that I grabbed from Youtube, I'm not sure why there are subtitles, but it's funny anyway.

Happy Birthday Bette

Today would have been Bette's 99th birthday, so I decided to make a little post about her. When I was younger, and didn't realize how great old movies were, I remember seeing Bette on talk shows, I think Phil Donahue was one, and I wondered 'Who is that old lady, and what's with the big attitude?' It wasn't until I was older that I finally realized the awesome-ness of Bette, and many of the other Old Hollywood stars.



Bette Davis was cool, and awesome, and ballsy, and fought for good roles where she could show her talent, unlike actresses of today who are more worried about what designer gown they're going to wear to premieres and award shows. That's why she had 'attitude' - she was good and she knew it, and many people see that as vanity or conceit, but it's really just confidence. All women should be that confident. Her career had many ups and downs but she continued to work, and was nominated for 10 Oscars. She thought of acting as a professional career, not as a lifestyle.



I think many people think of Bette in her later days. But I wanted to show off some younger photos of her, and since this is supposed to be a vintage-clothing related blog, I tried to choose some photos that showed off not only her beauty, but a little classic clothing too.



Some fun Bette Quotes -
- "I'm the nicest goddamn dame that ever lived"
- "Why am I so good at playing bitches? I think it's because I'm not a bitch. Maybe that's why Miss Crawford always plays ladies."
- "I've no time for broads who want to rule the world alone. Without men, who'd do up the zipper on the back of your dress?"
- "I will not retire while I've still got my legs and my make-up box."
- "Old age is no place for sissies"
- "I was thought to be 'stuck up.' I wasn't. I was just sure of myself. This is and always has been an unforgivable quality to the unsure"
- “I'd luv to kiss ya, but I just washed my hair.”
- "When a man gives his opinion he's a man. When a woman gives her opinion she's a bitch.”
- "You know what I'm going to have on my gravestone? 'She did it the hard way.'"


Bette Davis info on Wikipedia
And while searching online for photos and quotes (I really should be doing some work this morning) I found this great blog post, which kind of sums up how I see Bette too - Bette With An E: Why I Should Be Best Friends With Bette Davis