Last year, a new vintage shop opened up Reading – Georgina’s Vintage. Curious, I went on a visit with a friend and found a gorgeous skirt. Before Christmas, I headed back again to pick up this fabulous shirt and skirt combo. I fell in love with the colour and pattern. Both pieces are vintage and decently priced too.

‘Jenny’ cardigans from Vivien of Holloway have become a staple in my wardrobe. The rosewood colour compliments my vintage pieces perfectly. I’ve always enjoyed mixing vintage and reproduction clothing – with the right mix, you have a whole range of outfits at your disposal!

I love how many different colours there are in the skirt too. I’ve gone for burgundy and mustard here but I’d also love to try it with orange and teal too.

I added a simple vintage brooch and comfy Doc Martens to complete the look. Though in this weather, boots might be a better option.

Thanks again to Susan Phelps for capturing the richness of these colours – beautiful!

I’ll admit – I’ve had my ups and downs with Lindy Bop (inconsistent sizing mostly). However when I saw the Marianne twin sets pop up in their sale, I knew I had to have one.

I bought my first Marianne back in November for a girl date with my pal Steph. Mustard has fast become one of my favourite colours so I had to order it. When I got it, I was pleasantly surprised by the feel and quality of the fabric – I loved that the buttons were covered in the same material too.

I was very happy with the fit: true to the size chart and just the right length – definitely a good buy!

Now that I knew this style worked for me, I decided to chance it and grab another sale bargain. This time in teal.

The great thing about a twin set is that you don’t really need to worry about cardigans or jackets to go with your dress because you already have one! I simply added a little prawn brooch from The Hirst Collection for contrast – a cute detail.

Thanks to the talented Susan Phelps for my lovely teal dress photos – really perked me up after my post-Xmas blues!

After the joys of Christmas and New Year, January can feel pretty bleak. Term started over a week ago for me; I’m already feeling both stressed and tired. To fight my low mood, I’ve planned something nice to do each week. Hopefully, this will keep the doom and gloom at bay and help me to focus on positive moments.

During the holidays, a couple of friends organised a meet-up in London – just to hang out and catch up. Kelly and I booked tickets to a dance class linked to the Louise Dahl-Wolfe exhibition at the Fashion and Textile Museum in Bermondsey. It was great value – an hour’s dance class and access to the exhibition for fifteen quid.

A chilly day out called for an outfit of many layers: thermal vest (I get very cold), shirt, dungaree skirt, cardigan and thick jacket. I was colourful and toasty – perfect.

We turned up (fresh from the cold) for the class based on posing in Wolfe’s photography. As we picked the earlier class, the class was quite small but I definitely think that worked in our favour. Let’s just say we worked up a good sweat and had a proper boogie – highly recommended!

After a cool down outside, we headed back to explore the exhibition. There were many striking images throughout with photographs from the Great Depression to Old Hollywood. Upstairs there was also a small section dedicated to Dior – a lovely reminder of my time in Paris with my mum. If you’re in the area, do visit!

From there, we hopped on the tube to Angel. We’d worked up quite an appetite so I took Kelly to Kipferl (a lovely little Austrian restaurant). Kaesekrainer and sauerkraut consumed, we met up with Leanda, Becky, Carrie, Linz and Holly. Strolling through Camden Passage, we chatted and perused the goods on offer. We even got to bump into some cute pooches!

Next, we moved on to Brick Lane to rest our feet and consume doughnuts. This was my first time trying Crosstown Doughnuts and I was not disappointed. I had a creme brulee doughnut – it was just what I needed. After bidding farewell to the rest of the womenfolk, Kelly and I picked up some beigels before heading home. My feet were sore and my heart was happy.

Top of my list of things to do in 2018 was to highlight vintage and pin-up lovers from different backgrounds. Well, it makes sense to address this in my first blog post of the year!

I went through the long list of people I follow online and picked out ten accounts that share something other than what Google shows when you type in the words ‘vintage’ or ‘pin-up’. There are many more accounts I could share so I’ll probably do a few additional posts in the future. I’ve linked their IG accounts and added a short description.

The Urban Pinup

Image Credit: @beejacksonphotography

Elora is a woman with many strings to her bow: pin-up, gamer, artist and a whizz with hair-styling. She’s utterly hilarious and an all-round good soul.

Ms Tiff Mischief

Image Credit: @the_bella_rush

Tiff is a US-based lover of retro and vintage, who is always well turned-out. She shares her fab outfits and info about events she attends too.

Dandy Wellington

Image Credit: @Nina.Galicheva.NYC

Dandy is a talented bandleader based in New York. He is always impeccably dressed – lots of style inspiration. Often he shares stories or posts about people of colour, past and present.

Pinups Of Colour

Image Credit: @katesepulvedavergara by @angela_altus

The Pinups Of Colour account shares posts about people of colour who enjoy pin-up/vintage style. I’ve discovered so many people through this account and there’s a ton of fashion and styling inspiration too.

Violet Chachki

Image Credit: @k_iphoto

If you’re a fellow Drag Race fanatic, you’ll know who Violet is. Violet is a drag queen, specialising in burlesque fantasy performances. From her hair to her shoes, her make-up to her costuming, she is exquisite.

The Desi Pinup

Image Credit: @thedesipinup

Laila is an Aussie pin-up, who has an array of stunning tattoos. She shares elements of her Desi background on her account, including the styling of some of her pin-up looks.

Frantasy Island

Image Credit: @tonymckaystudios

Fran is a bright and colourful pin-up from New Zealand, who’s a hair and make-up artist. She’s also a disability advocate, sharing her experiences and thoughts on the subject.

His Vintage Touch

Image Credit: @hisvintagetouch

Tony is an incredibly talented vintage hair-stylist, primping and preening an array of people. He also speaks out on issues such as racism, homophobia and transphobia.

Angel Demure

Image Credit: @angeldemure

Angel is a fellow vintage lover, based in the US. Not only is she well put-together, she styles her hair beautifully in a variety of ways.

Onyx Vintage Magazine

Image Credit: @onyxvintagemagazine

Onyx Vintage Magazine puts a spotlight on black and brown history. Contributors to the magazine come from a variety of backgrounds. You read about anything from cherished family stories to make-up tutorials.

This is only a slight glimpse into the huge world of vintage/pin-up – there is so much out there and I hope to discover more and more. Remember that a lot of what we see is a very narrow view of a subculture.

Which accounts do you follow that show a different element of the vintage/pin-up subculture? What kind of inspiration are you looking for?