Stepping stones across the river...


These trees with coins hammered into them appear in several places along the valley at Dovedale. They are known as "wishing trees". It's a custom in the UK which dates back to around the 1700s where a person suffering an illness would embed a coin in the tree in the belief that it would cure their illness. An alternate version of the custom states that knocking coins into the trees will bring good fortune. According to the custom, anyone who removes a coin from a wishing tree will themselves become ill.





My brother's friend Max's wonderful style...

Last time I modelled with Steve and his usual clients, I was lucky enough to try out several products from the Bésame Cosmetics range as my lovely hairdresser Jac is now the supplier for our region.

While I really enjoyed all of the products which I used (including the crimson rouge, violet brightening powder and cake mascara), my absolute favourites were the lipsticks. There are a few different shades which I would like to own soon, but I finally got around to ordering a tube of American Beauty, which my favourite shade for my skin tone. It's a colour from 1945, so fits in perfectly with my interests.

It's described by Bésame as a cool berry shade, which I think would be the most flattering on cool and pale skin tones due to the blue rather than orange undertones. It's a shade that puts me in mind of Snow White. It's a great daytime red but I'll of course enjoy it for evening wear as well.

I really like the texture and scent of Bésame lipsticks; they feel like really good quality products. The colour goes on smoothly and opaquely, and lasts well even under hot studio lights. The only negative thing I really have to say is that the price is quite high. I paid £22 for the lipstick, which is more than twice the price of some of my everyday lipsticks, and considerably more than the cheapest lipsticks I own which often cost no more than around £2. Of course this isn't the most expensive lipstick ever, but it might not be an option for every budget. That being said, you get what you pay for in this case. I will definitely buy from Bésame again in the future.

If you're based in the UK, you can order from Tip Top Hair Design by giving them a call on 01332 862740, or by popping in to the salon which is located on the Staunton Harold Estate near Ashby-De-La-Zouch.


Edited 25/11/14 to correct pricing information.

Just a quick look at a casual 40s-ish look from a while ago - mainly because I was pleased with the hair! I'm wearing my vintage human hair hair net from Joanna, which is always a bit tricky to put on as the top isn't elasticated, but it's worth it!

It was my birthday recently and my grandparents gave me some money which they requested I use to buy some sturdy shoes for the winter. I looked around at a lot of different shops but was struggling to find something which was both the style I wanted and within my budget. I specifically wanted leather shoes (sorry, vegetarians/vegans) because I find them much better for my feet, especially in the winter as I can suffer from very cold feet or chilblains if I wear shoes which aren't warm enough.

After some searching I have ended up with these beautiful 1940s shoes which remind me of Mary Poppins. I'm really pleased with them and I think they'll be ideal for this winter.



We were treated to some unseasonably warm weather over the end of October and start of November, but now it feels as though winter has started to arrive as it was absolutely freezing when I was taking these photos. I do like to try and brave the cold for a short while for winter outfit photos since otherwise all my photos end up being of the same coat.

This skirt has really been my workhorse item from about late summer onwards. It won't stand up to a really harsh winter if we get one this year, but for the moment it's ok either on it's own or layered with a small petticoat.

One element of vintage clothing which is often used to help establish a date for the item is the zip.
Zips became common on women's clothing around the 1930s and have remained common to the present day. If you're in doubt as to the age of an item of clothing, the zip can often give you an indication of when the item was produced, although as with other methods for dating vintage clothing, exceptions to rules can always occur. Online sellers of vintage clothing will sometimes list the type of zip which is present in an item, but if this information is not supplied and I am unsure whether the item I'm looking at is actually from the decade that is stated in the listing, I will ask.

Here are a few things to look out for when using zips to help date vintage clothing:

It was really misty first thing this morning and a lot colder than we've been enjoying recently. I just managed to get a few photos before there was an influx of dog-walkers and morning-strollers. I added a hat to my outfit before heading out into town which really topped it off nicely. Please feel free to imagine a black beret on my head!