These photos were taken at the same time as the ones in my previous post, but in the end I decided to let the Pearl coat have it's own post because it's just so pretty.

Anyway, this is the outfit I was wearing underneath the coat, which is formed mostly of components I've had for at least 5 years - in fact here is me wearing practically the same outfit (in much warmer weather) in 2013.



All of the items are from the high street, but styled in the right way they lend themselves well to a vintage wardrobe. The skirt in particular is very reminiscent of some of the border-print 1950s style skirts available from lots of retro and repro shops but in fact came from Primark. If I remember rightly they also had a few different patterns available in the style at the time, which I am sad to this day I didn't buy. Of course this purple one is so pretty (and even has it's own built-in petticoat) and it honestly deserves to get worn a lot more often than I reach for it. I think because I no longer have that many other things in my wardrobe that match it colour-wise, but this keeps surviving any wardrobe culls because deep down I really love it.





Recently I'm really loving my hair in a roll; it's very practical for bad weather and as a bonus it doesn't matter whether or not I have curled my hair. I use a hair rat, and just twist the sides a little bit then hide any mistakes or messy bits with hair flowers, which is pretty much one of the most useful hair tricks I know. I'll definitely be rocking this as a fairly quick and easy hairstyle for early mornings this Spring.

It's still pretty cold here even though little signs of Spring are starting to show, and we might even be due more snow. Although that's not exactly what I'd like to see as we head into April, it does give me the opportunity to wear my gorgeous new Collectif Pearl Coat, which is something I've had my eye on for years. After I managed to get my hands on the Hell Bunny Elvira coat in black at the end of last year I knew I wanted to get at least one more in a shade of brown so that I'd be sorted for pretty much any outfit. I actually would particularly like one in camel, but I also think this tan one will be very useful and to be honest I was a bit restricted in choice because there is just no way I can afford one of these full price. At least I have quite a lot of tan accessories to go with it.



I was so excited about being able to photograph the coat that I completely forgot to steam out the creases from shipping, but I still really enjoyed twirling around in the daffodils and having myself a Jon Snow moment with the fur collar. I really like how the collar on this one has a hook and eye underneath so you can wear it either open like I am here, or like a little muff. (Are they even called muffs if you wear them around your neck? You know what I mean though!).

This has all the same perks as the Hell Bunny coat, so of course I love it. You can read my full blog post about the Elvira coat here, but I think all these 1950s-style coats have a great flattering shape and glamorous look, as well as being long enough and wide enough to fully cover my swing skirts/dresses.



I opted for a UK size 10 in the hope that I would be able to fit a couple of layers underneath, but I could easily have sized up to a 12 to get some extra space. I'd say the 10 fits more like what I'd expect a size 8 to fit like so depending on your fit preference you may wish to size up by 1-2 sizes. Of course this isn't the sort of style where you'd want a baggy fit, but I do have some quite thick jumpers (necessary for the weather here!) that I do want to be able to fit under my coat without feeling uncomfortable and bulky all day.

Hello everyone, and welcome back to Steampunk Saturdays. Today's outfit features a few items that I'm really excited about, and what I hope might be the last snow of the season (unless we get a white Easter like some are predicting), which arrived last weekend. We took the opportunity to shoot some photos that I've been excited about for absolutely ages and it's been a while in the planning so I hope you enjoy the results.

The outfit began after I attended the Subaquatic Steampunk Weekend where I wore a gorgeous black Victorian-style skirt that I purchased from Corsets UK. After I got back from the event I noticed that the skirt was starting to come apart at the seams, so I emailed Corsets UK's customer support. The customer service was absolutely excellent - something that I find is becoming more and more unusual - and they offered to send me out a new skirt as a replacement. As the original skirt was now sold out, I opted for this tiered brown satin number which I thought would make some pretty cool outfits. I also wasn't required to send the original skirt back, so if I can figure out a way to mend or alter it, I will be using it again for steampunk costumes in the future.



One of the things that particularly drew me to this skirt is the really cool beadwork on the waistband, which I think adds a very unique touch. It also has an interesting chain detail which looks great, but me being the clumsy person that I am, I keep getting it caught on door handles and things as I go past!

Unfortunately the skirt is quite a lot too big for me on the waist, and with no option to wear a belt due to the beading, the only way I can make it sort of fit is by wearing something a bit bulky underneath. I'm wearing the smallest size that was available (UK 8) but I'd say it fits more like a 10 if not even a 12. I can't see it on the website any more but if it does ever become available again (or if you see it for sale elsewhere), I'd definitely recommend sizing down if possible.



The next item is my really seriously cool Alchemy Gothic Aetheric Inclinometer Attache Bag from Blue Banana. I love the design with the compass, and it's made of a really sturdy canvass material with leather accents. It really adds to an Aethernaut inspired outfit, and would probably be good for an explorer style as well. The only thing I don't like is the size - it's not even big enough to fit my phone in, which makes it not particularly useful to take to events. I can fit small items such as makeup, tissues, money etc, but I will definitely need a larger bag for taking out with me.





The last item for today's post is this gorgeous pistol that I borrowed from my other half. We got it from Head Case Curios in Southsea, and it's absolutely beautiful. I'd definitely like my own at some point, especially as you can get all sorts of different ones. I'm tempted by a little handbag pistol, something I can fit in a thigh holster, or a great big blunderbuss or something.

Anyway, that's pretty much it for today. Let me know in the comments which is your favourite item from today's post and I'll see you all soon.

I love those Spring days when the sun comes out even though it's still pretty cold. It makes it feel as though nicer weather is on its way and I start looking forward to being able to wear my lighter weight dresses that don't come out during the winter. At the moment most days I'm still wrapped in a few layers (I love this oversized cardigan; it's so warm) but at least I'm able to start bringing more skirts and sheer stockings and tights into my outfits. This outfit ended up making me feel slightly librarian-esque in an Evie O'Connell kind of way, even though I don't really see that come across on the photos. I actually think the cardigan changes the whole look of it as I originally tried the outfit on without it. It was quite chilly taking the photos though so: cardigan. Although it ended up being so sunny that I am looking down in pretty much all the photos.



One thing I've been saying for ages that I must get better at doing is accessorising. I have a lot of lovely jewellery but a combination of my jewellery storage not really working for me, and laziness, means that I tend to stick to the same few items all the time and so some of my things just don't get the love they deserve. This cameo necklace is a new addition to my collection courtesy of Blue Banana and I'm definitely not letting this end up at the bottom of my jewellery box. For a start, it perfectly straddles my interests in both vintage and steampunk fashion and I will certainly be wearing it with both styles. But also, look what happens when you open it up:




How flipping cool is it that it's also a watch?! Pretty great if you ask me, and I do actually use it to tell the time when I'm wearing it so it's also super handy. I can't actually find it on the website at the moment so it's probably sold out, but you can find some other watches from Blue Banana here and if you like things a bit on the gothic side they also currently have this one which is on a necklace. If it's cameos you like, they also have this choker and a cuff, both of which are really affordable and I'm really tempted to pick them up.

Anyway, I like the nice long chain on the necklace though I have also been able to put it back through the loop to double it up so I can wear it with any outfits where the longer chain doesn't look right. I also *think* I can replace the battery when it goes, because I did once manage to get the back to pop off (though I haven't attempted to actually get the battery out).

And by the way, yes - it was very cold taking these photos! It was a beautiful sunny day but still, these were taken in February. Just in case anyone is concerned, I was indeed wearing a coat (my Hell Bunny Elvira coat to be specific -  more photos here).



Here is the final side-by-side comparison of the new version of the dress with the original. I think it came out looking pretty good, if I do say so myself! Here's to more clothes dyeing adventures in the future.

This is the second set of photos Lexie took for me using the 50mm lens that I mentioned in this post. Like the others, these are not quite as sharp as they could be, but hopefully by the time you are actually reading this post we might have sorted things out.

Anyway, camera niggles aside, this stunning original 1950s dress is a relatively new addition to my wardrobe, having been purchased sometime towards the end of last year. I actually wore it on Christmas day but never got around to photographing it and as it's definitely evening wear, I haven't had an occasion to wear it since. I love the beautiful bows up the back, although this isn't a dress that I can manage to get into by myself as it features both a back zip and about 4 or 5 hooks and eyes in various places. I also really love that unusual V back and the pretty sash, although its made of a very creasy material and it has pleats which I keep telling myself I won't buy because I absolutely hate ironing them, especially when the dress is just going to crease up anyway.

For these photos we went a little bit Jackie O inspired with pearls and my black pillbox (which you can also see in this haul). We also picked out the same cream bag that I included in the last outfit we shot together to help break up the black-on-black-on-black effect of my hat, gloves and coat. I think we will reshoot the dress another time with some other accessories (and hopefully better luck with our camera equipment!)