January In Review and Erstwilder

I don't know about you but  feel like January has flown by! I can't believe it's almost February already.

I have been really focusing on my new year's resolutions this month and taking a step back to evaluate. It's been really good and I'm feeling very motivated.

Making Healthy Choices 

In terms of making healthy choices I have been making lots but actually enjoying it. I'm not on a "diet" but just choosing the healthier option every day.

The cost of my shopping is so much cheaper and I'm enjoying cooking healthy alternative recipes of my favourite meals. I might share some of my quick and easy recipes on here in the near future although this blog will never become a diet blog!  

I've also been moving more and walking to work when the weather is ok, I've just bought some new trainers as my old ones fell to bits so no excuses not to use my gym membership now!

Seeing Friends

January was a quite month and financially I wanted to recover from Christmas. However every year I get together with a very old friend of mine. We worked in the same office for nearly 10 years and always go out for her sister's birthday at the end of January and it makes for something nice to look forward to! 

I'm glad I had one social thing to do in January and seeing her reminded me of the people you do keep in your life for good reasons.

New Experiences 

I haven't had time to travel anywhere obviously however I have been spending time on Google researching lots of the places I would like to visit both in England and abroad.

I've also started a really good budget spreadsheet to work out all the costs to make sure I can fit everything in.

Now they say you should reward yourself when you are doing well but I didn't want to buy any clothes or anything like that because I have just done a mammoth charity shop run and this is half of my for sale pile...

So I decided to pop into town and I treat myself to a little something in order to reward myself, especially since I have not had cigarettes for a month as well as my healthy eating.

As soon as I saw this Erstwilder brooch in the flesh I fell in love with it. Out of all of their Grease range I think this one is my favourite because it's the best scene in the movie in my opinion.

The brooch itself is beautifully made with the iridescent pattern on the cape and the individually crafted rollers in her hair catching the light, I just adore it!  

I hope you've had a productive January too!

Until next time
Love
Lucy
Xx

£1.00 Vintage Life Hacks

I've always been a fan of a hint or tip, long before the internet was a feature in everyone's homes my sister Vicky and I would laugh over the readers suggestions page in my grandma's "Take a Break"

Tips like "Why waste money on stickers to stop birds flying into your patio doors when you could use sanitary towels instead?"

But I'd like to think my tips are slightly more helpful than this and today I had a Poundland flash of inspiration so here are the life hacks that have made this Vintagers life instantly easier...

Necklace Nonsense

In my new year clear out I was in despair for my necklaces, I hardly wear them because I didn't have anywhere to keep them where I could see what I had.

In Poundland's 50p sale I spotted these utensil holders and was inspired.

I knew these would not be too wide for the inside of my wardrobe door so I bought two to try it out.

The hooks are perfect for necklaces that don't have any fastenings and the rest of the rail displays all my necklaces at one glance.

I will need another one but now I know it works well I'm chuffed.


Moth Mania

I'm obsessed with moth protection but kept finding that the moth ball packets, which I would hide away  in little corners, easily become forgotten about and then when I find them I don't know if it's a new or an old one.

Solution...these little organza bags (5 for £1) from the wedding/party section of Poundland house the moth balls perfectly but also look more attractive and are quite vibrant so when it comes to replacing them I can spot each bag easily and replace the moth ball.

Brainy Bakelite Idea

A few months ago I saw a huge wine box in a charity shop and picked it up. Now I pick them up whenever I see them. This one was £1.25.

Bakelite needs to be stored properly. I used to store mine in plastic but I was told this was a bad idea.

Wine cases like this one are perfect for this because a bottle of wine is a little wider than the average bangle meaning these wooden boxes are the prefect shape for bake!

I hope you enjoyed these hacks. I have a load more of little hacks I use to keep on top of my vintage so I might do another post like this in the future.

Until Next Time
Lots of love
Lucy
xx

Krakow Vintage Shopping/Haul

I have been meaning to post this for ages but hadn't found the time even though I was dying to show you the treasures I picked up at the flea markets in Krakow.

When researching Poland I had a look online and discovered there were two flea markets very close to my apartment on the weekend and I was very excited about this.

You can watch my haul video of what I got at each market here.

1. Hala Targowa,  ul. Grzegórzecka - Sunday

This is half antiques sellers, half bootsale type sellers with everything from religious iconography to pots and pans. 

Some of the online reviews of this market were quite cruel about the sellers calling them tramps or drunks - I think this is disgusting personally. There are people with stalls who have things on tables who are more like dealers and there are the casual sellers who are just selling their own things like a bootsale who have their things in small cases or on sheets on the floor. There were some colourful characters and very animated conversations going on but everyone was really lovely to me, sober or not so sober. 

Things were priced very reasonable and the swing in pricing between the established stall holders and the bootsale sellers varied greatly.  

This market is a short walk from the main square and you really cannot miss it, you'll see the sellers before you see this sign. 

I wandered round twice, had a pretzel from one of the many pretzel stands then wandered around again. It feels like a bit of a maze at first and it is very crowded but so much fun! 


Plac Nowy 

Having read all about this market I was very excited to visit on Saturday when, from my research, I thought there would be lots of vintage sellers. Saturday was actually my last day in Krakow but it was also a national holiday. With low hopes of the market being open I headed down. 

I must say I wasn't feeling my best as I had been to a swing party the night before and with carrying all my luggage I was worse for wear to say the least! 

About 12 stall holders had come out that day so the market wasn't what I had read about but I was grateful for something to look at and happily it was the jewellery sellers that had ventured out that day. 

Unfortunately I cannot say what the full market would be like which was a little bit disappointing but what could I expect on a national holiday? I still found some great pieces. 

The prices at this market are a little more expensive but the quality is very good and it's a better location to find a nice cafe for lunch after your shopping with tonnes of choice in the surrounding streets. 

If ever I went back to Krakow I would visit both of these again. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and the video! 

Until next time 
Love 
Lucy
xx

Vintage Events I'd Love to Try

Within the world of Vintage there are so many events it can seem hard to keep up. This year I decided I wanted to research more of the UK's vintage scene in the hopes of finding some new places to visit.

Here is my list of 5 vintage events I have yet to discover....

The Big O Festival https://www.thebigofestival.co.uk

The Big O Festival appeals to me because it celebrates vintage culture across the decades from the 1940's to the 1980's which would be perfect for me as there are elements of each era that I love. It's held in Orpington which is easily accessible from London.

In 2018 it is being held on July 7th and I am planning on attending to see what it's all about

*I've just been informed by a member of their team that this event is free (as I'd enquired about where to buy a ticket) so you can just turn up on the day - Amazing!

Festival of Vintage  http://www.festivalofvintage.co.uk

I cannot believe for the second year in a row I will be away for FOV as I have been trying to get to this for ages. Festival of Vintage is so highly regarded by my friends as one of the better vintage festivals that I am going to be keeping a keen eye out for the dates in 2019 to make sure I can go!

Festival of vintage is held at York racecourse and is on 21 and 22 August 2018.

Classic Carboot Sale Kings Cross  https://www.classiccarbootsale.co.uk

Having lived in North London for a couple of years now this is another event that I cannot believe I haven't been to. The Classic Car Boot Sale in Kings Cross is on my must visit list. I am not much of a petrol head but I do like seeing old vehicles even if I don't know much about them. I will definitely be at the next one in April and have already marked the day in my calendar.

The next Kings Cross Event is on 28th and 29th April 2018.

Pop Up Vintage Fairs - Ally Pally https://popupvintagefairs.co.uk

I can see Alexandra Palace from the top of the hill near my house and yet I haven't been there for any event. Their events page has a massive range of things to do so I am looking forward to going there not just for the vintage but to actually see the place.

Pop up vintage fairs is always a well organised event and with a great range of sellers.

The next event is on 18 February 2018.

Rhythm Riot https://www.facebook.com/pg/RhythmRiotWeekend/about/?ref=page_internal

Held at Pontins (who doesn't love Pontins?) I have heard that this is one of the friendliest vintage events going, it's a weekend and so will take some planning but I'd like to try and go to this in 2018, this event seems more about the music than some of the others and I like that. Sometimes vintage events seem to focus too much on the shopping aspects but I like to learn more about a variety of the elements of the era.

I have enjoyed plotting out a little bit of 2018 and thinking about all the lovely new experiences to be had, my little bubble of vintage life is becoming more important to me these days.

Until next time
Love
Lucy
xx

OOTD Krakow Style

On my recent visit to Krakow I met a wonderful woman, also a fan of vintage, who kept me company on my trip.

It was something people had told me about travelling, that you meet people naturally but I must admit I was shocked when that turned out to be true as I can be socially awkward at best!

The lady I met suggested we take some outfit photos around Krakow and as you can imagine I was more than happy to do that!

It's great to have some memories that are not just selfies too!

This coat was a car boot bargain from Betty Jackson Black, it's a classic shape and is warm enough with layering to withstand the colder days but lightweight enough to carry when it's gets too hot in a museum or gallery, Macs are great for vintage tourists. 

I always pack my holiday clothes with a colour scheme in mind so I can mix and match things. This simple cotton dress came from a car boot sale for £1.50 and the cardigan is from H&M and I got it in a charity shop. 

In between photos we fought off the cold in some of the beautiful coffee houses, I remember ordering an Irish coffee where this photo was taken which knocked my head off...but it did keep me warm! 

There was a beautiful garden which sadly we couldn't get into as it was locked, much of Krakow looks like a scene from a movie. 

I am not the most natural poser in the world but we fought the freezing temperatures in short sleeves, we did get some odd looks but it was so much fun seeing places I wouldn't have known about had it not been for my lovely friend! 

My hotter boots earned their money in my wardrobe on this trip and are comfy enough to wear all day, I wore them so much before I left for my trip that I did have to pay a trip to the shoe mender in town for new heel tips because I wear these so much! 

I only like to take one handbag on holiday so it has to go with everything, my black Kelly bag serves the purpose nicely! Gloves (and not dainty vintage ones but wool ones) were the order of the day in Krakow. 

This necklace is not Bakelite but passes quite well, I only took my yellow jewellery away with me and some coordinating pieces. The brooch was actually from the flea market in Krakow, it's got an interesting detail but I'll tell you all about that in my haul video coming soon. 

For my bangles I took my yellows and greens away with me and they coordinate with pretty much all of my holiday wardrobe. 

I am so happy to have these photos to remember my trip and the wonderful friend I made. 

Until next time 

Love 

Lucy 

xx