Most of the items in Part One were purchased way back in December/January and I've bought quite a few new bits since then, some of which I have actually already documented in other posts. As a consequence, I'm not going to repeat myself, so I'll stick to items I've not actually posted about yet.
I've been back to Mile End Vintage a couple of times in February and March and bought a few more things. On both visits they were having a Pound Sale, where everything (or most things in any case) cost just £1. I spent £5 on the first occasion and around £10 on the second visit. Some of my favourite items included this Laura Ashley alpaca cardigan. I particularly like the neckline on this.
It has a wonderful bit of smocking on the shoulders that I adore. It will be lovely and light to wear in the summer months.
Another shirt I bought from here was this yellow spotted cotton shirt. It's lovely and loose and I love the polka dots print. I didn't realise when I bought it, but it had some marks on the front that wouldn't wash out. I've tried to disguise them here with one of my favourite vintage brooches. This will probably be lovely and cool to wear in the summer months too. It also ties nicely at the waist to give that 50's look.
I also bought this red silk blouse on the second visit. (At least I think it's silk) I washed it by hand when I got it home, as it was a bit grubby around the collar. It came up nice and clean.
On my second visit, I took LB with me and she bought a few things too. One of which, was this lovely scarf that she gave me for Mother's day. I love it. It goes with the red shirt quite nicely too.
In the last couple of months, I've also bought a couple of things from eBay. Probably my favourite purchase is this pinstriped button front pencil skirt. It's not actually vintage, in fact it's from Next, but I just really like it because it is really flattering and I enjoy wearing it. I think I paid £7.50 for it, which was a good price considering postage was included. I've worn it a couple of times for work and a dance class and it works well for both.
I've also recently discovered a new favourite Second Hand Shop in my locality. I used to pass it when I was walking the dog and one day I saw this dress hanging in the doorway. When I asked the lady what size it was, it was my size, so I just had to buy it. I loved the fact that it was both checked and buttoned all the way down. I just love button down dresses and skirts at the moment.
It's a vintage Debenhams Classics dress and cost just £7, which I think is good value. It has a lovely vintage look to it. I added shoulder pads, as it looked better with a bit more bulk on the shoulders. It's probably 1980's, but I like it all the same and can't wait to wear it when the weather gets a bit warmer.
Anyway, the shop owner kindly let me take my dog into the shop, so I managed to find a couple of other things to buy, including this modern black dress from Simply Be. I particularly like it's asymmetry and the small split up the front which makes it very floaty for dancing.
On a second visit to this shop, just before the lockdown happened here in London, I managed to buy this cute cross body bag in there for just £4.
I particularly liked this bag as it was mostly made of PU and is easy to wipe clean (save for the checked fabric on the front), which is especially useful when there's a virus going around. I have now set aside my leather bags and am using this bag for the foreseeable future. It's also got lots of great pockets, both inside and out. I'm a sucker for pockets, as I can have a different section for each of the different things I keep in my handbag and then I know exactly where everything is when I need it.
I also bought this gingham shirt on this visit, which is from Zara. It cost £2.50. I've made some adjustments to the neck to make it look like it does now. It originally looked like this:
I wasn't so keen on the pointy collar, so added elastic loops and buttons and it gave it a completely different look that I really like.
My final purchase was this brand new faux leather cheque book cover for £1. I know that cheques are almost obsolete, but I do still write them to pay my credit cards and to send the odd cash gift to people, so I thought I could make use of this. I rather like it in an old fashioned sort of way.
Well, that's about it for Part 2. There may be a Part Three at some point in the future or I may just do some outfit styling posts for the different pieces in my wardrobe to show you how I put them together and wear them with other accessories. I hope you have enjoyed this post.
That collar on the gingham shirt!!! Love it.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.