A break from blogging and new website

I've been taking a little break from blogging in the past month but I'm hoping exciting things are going to come from it.

Blogging is not my full time job and sometimes my paid work gets just a little busy! Summer is particularly hectic sometimes and I spend less and less time with a mental capacity for other things.

Another reason for the break is because I've not really been feeling myself of late, I've been working really hard on decluttering my home and particularly my wardrobe which resulted in a huge eBay haul.

It's very cathartic to have a clear out and I sold nearly 100 items resulting in enough money for me to book a week in Prague so it was well worth doing but really took some time and effort to sort things out. 

A few weeks of decluttering, organising and getting myself together at home really made me think about the blog and how to make it as authentic as possible. I enjoy writing it but sometimes I feel a pressure about content and expectations. 

Some of the best advice I ever received was to only ever write for yourself and I felt I'd lost that a little bit. 

For example I enjoy baking but am certainly not a baker and hardly ever have occasion to do it, but because it's a vintage blog I feel like it's something I should do.

So now I'm saying nuts to that, that's the whole thing about the vintage community, it's made up of a all different kinds of people who have a variety of takes on vintage and what it means to them. We don't have to aspire to be one era or another or to only be "true vintage" in any of our walks in life. 

I've been concern myself with not being "vintage enough" to be blogging about vintage when I could just be writing about what inspires me without worrying about it.

So with that in mind I will be launching Era Go Again on it's own website and the first post to launch it will be my Prague round ups.

I'm so looking forward to the trip and to bringing a wider variety of content.

Until next time
Love
Lucy
Xx

Psoriasis Post - Lush Goodies Review

My psoriasis is not something I have blogged very much about at all. I've had it for about 10 years and it affects me on the day to day especially in what I wear as I like to cover it as much as possible.

It's been a thing I have struggled with for a long time to be honest and is not something I have ever loved talking about. But social media has brought my attention to people who suffer from it talking about it, swapping tips and sympathising with each other, it's always nice to know you are not alone.

This month I decided to try some natural products as I have been relying on cheap and cheerful body lotions for a while and whilst they don't make it any worse they are a quick fix and don't offer much relief especially in this hot weather.

Lush Products Review

Bath bombs

I have always stayed away from anything to perfumed in cosmetics shops as they tend to flare my skin up but as Lush uses natural ingredients I decided to try some of their bath bombs.

Big Blue

The Big Blue bath bomb contains sea salt and seaweed, sea salt is very good for dry skin conditions and I have used bath salts in the past. The bath bomb turns the water a deep blue colour and the seaweed is really fun too. My skin felt very soft after this, just like the sea it loosens any built up patches of psoriasis without the need to exfoliate roughly. Exfoliating, whilst necessary, can be bad for your skin if you do it too hard or too often.

Dream Cream

Dream Cream has been hot in the press because a woman used it on her baby's eczema and it cleared up, I'm willing to try most things I read about to try to help my condition. This cream contains oats which have a magical power to stop skin itching so much.

At night I can sometimes scratch myself in my sleep so this cream gives a very welcome relief especially for a good night. It also contains rose water which is very good for relieving skin that is flared up. I noticed a difference in about three days. Also it smells lovely and really relaxes me when I put it on at night. No wonder it's called Dream Cream!

Butterball

As an alternative to the Big Blue I also bought this butter ball bath bomb which contains coco butter that melts into the bath water once the fizzing ends. It's a great alternative for people with sensitive skin as it moisturises the skin as well as making the water smell gorgeous!

Bath Oils

Aside from looking completely edible (they aren't) these little balls are dense in oils which is great for moisturising skin. They smell very decadent too. You just pop them in the water and let them melt away. They are especially nice for de-stressing in the evening, stress is a big component of my psoriasis so having time to relax is important.

Flower's Barrow and Furze

Floating Island and Mellow Moment 

I have noticed since using these products that my skin is a lot less red, it feels calmer and less itchy. I am sleeping better which is always an issue for me as my skin tends to keep me up at night when it is sore.

I don't think these products will cure my psoriasis, after all they are not designed to, but they have certainly offered me some respite from it.

I hope these reviews were useful, what are your favourite Lush products?

Until next time
Love
Lucy
xx

There's a snake in my shoe...Miss L Fire Christie Review

Miss L Fire is one of those brands that I had envied on other people but had never actually tried myself.

Because I have quite large feet (I'm a 41) and can sometimes find width a problem I tend to shy away from buying online.

However when I saw the Christie shoes by Miss L Fire had gone on sale I threw a bit of caution to the wind and decided to try them out.

I loved the dark green colour and since this goes so well with much of my wardrobe I thought they would be an investment worth making.

The shoes are closed toe which is my preference for shoes, the front of them is a slight v shape giving them a really retro feel.

The detail on these shoes are these metallic diamond cut outs and these little snake heads, I must confess I didn't notice them when I ordered them but they were a fun surprise!

Obviously fit is the most important thing with shoes. I had heard that some people size up a bit in Miss L Fire. I am a 7.5/8 depending on the brand so I ordered an 8 (41) in these and the fit is perfect. They also do have a returns policy on their website if the fit hadn't been right.

The soles are a good solid platform which is always great with heels of this height as they make it far more comfy to walk.

The heels and platform are this snakeskin effect, I think this is useful as the rest of the shoe is suede but I find that a buffer between the floor and suede means less shoe damage!

The insides of these shoes are gentle padded, they have a great cushioned sole which adds to the comfort factor. I wore these for a full day at the office before writing this review because I wanted to make sure I'd tested this out! I can confirm I latest the day in them!

As I said I bought these on sale from the Miss L Fire website for £50.00 plus delivery and am extremely happy I did. There are a lot of great styles on their website at the moment, I love their spring/summers styles.

I hope you enjoyed this review, I'll definitely be keeping an eye on the Miss L Fire website for more vintage styles. 

Until next time 

Love 

Lucy 

xx

Loving Lana - Vivien of Holloway Dress Review

Quite a while ago now I wrote about how much I loved the Lana dresses at Vivien of Holloway, although I'd never quite found a way to splash the cash on one.

Over Easter Vivien of Holloway had a sale which always peaks my interest as it is a short bus ride away from me.

The first dress from my haul to review had to be the lovely Lana.  This one was 50% so it was £50.00.

The thing that drew me to this dress initially was the colour. I love autumnal tones and dark green features in a lot of my jewellery collection. I also loved the grey pattern which looks almost like stone, it makes me think of a garden in a stately home with statues and lush green lawns.

Secondly the cut of the Lana dress is very flattering, I've seen it featured on so many peoples Instagram profiles and I honestly think it looks great on everyone. The bust was generous enough and there are no buttons to consider.  

The waist is nipped in and give the appearance of a smaller waistline but still comfy to sit down in, it has a side zip which I usually consider the devil but the cut means you are not battling the zip once it reaches side boob! 

The draping on the bust and the waist gives the dress a lovely fluid movement. 

I generally always wear cardigans and I wondered how it would look with the Lana dress but the bust line, with the extra fabric folds, can lay neatly on top or just peep over a cardigan so it still features beautifully. 

This style of dress is in a very light weight fabric which is great for all seasons, in the winter I would add a slip but in the summer it will be fine on it's own. 

I have already washed and worn this one and I must confess I didn't even need to iron it because the fabric dried so flat! Always a welcome bonus for any dress in my house. 

I wore my new Miss L Fire shoes to the office too which I'll be reviewing next week. 

I have two other Vivien of Holloway styles to review thanks to the Easter sale so keep your eyes peeled in the coming weeks. Although I don't think this is going to be the last Lana in my wardrobe! 

Until next time 

Love 

Lucy 

xx 

A Homemade Hat from a Pile of Tat

The Facebook memories tool reminded me today that four years ago my obsession with my glue gun began. 

Given that London Hat Week inspired Catherine of Vintage Frills to set me a hat making challenge for later in the summer I thought I'd share with you my first ever attempt at up-cycling from absolute crap that was destined for the bin. 

The problem all started when I ran out of conditioner and was left with this little pot. I'm the kind of person who, as I walk to the bin, thinks "what could I use this for?"

It occurred to me it was the perfect size and shape to be a little hat. The fabric was from a dress I had accidentally ruined with bleach so it needed re-purposing.

Cotton is easiest fabric for projects like this I find. I covered the hat with the fabric using my trusty glue gun.  

It's not rocket science to cover the tub in glue and stick the fabric on, I also did the inside so it looks like a semi professional job! 

I had an odd vintage button lying around doing nothing so that also got a new lease of life in this project. 

A couple of feathers that were in my craft box made a great decoration for this hat. 

I threaded them through the button,it was handy that it had a back like this because it held everything in place neatly. More glue was required to attach this to the hat... 

And voila! One hat from a pile of tat! 

I love the idea of making these for novelty occasions or for those outfits where you just cannot find a matching accessory. Who would know it was a plastic hair conditioner tub?! 

Until next time 

Love 

Lucy 

xx 

London Hat Week and Cahoot's Birthday Fun!

Last month I turned 33, I must say your thirties are quite brilliant!

I always try and do something a little different on my birthday and happily this month it coincided with London Hat Week!

Catherine from Vintage Frills usually indulges me in a birthday escapade and we made a plan to meet up for a couple of the exhibitions. To explain London hat week is made up of a schedule of events ranging from theatrical productions to the hat exhibition itself.

We decided to go to the hat exhibition and the Suffragette event, both were big held at different locations as the events are across London.

The hat exhibition was fantastic, a range of milliners from all over the world had contributed to this exhibition.

There were so many to see we had to walk around a few times as there seemed to be something new each time.

I found so many of the pieces so inspiring, some were unapologetic in their political theme.

 

Others took inspiration from previous decades.

 

Here were some of my  other favourites.

 

 

After seeing all these amazing hats we ventured down to the Millennial Rebels exhibition which was showing a selection of wet plate photography depicting the suffragette movement.

I had never seen a wet plate photo up close and we had a long chat with the artist, Nicolas Laborie who was so welcoming and took a great deal of time explaining his process and asking us all about our vintage style.

They were also asking people to write their message on a board and to have a photo taken, here is our one where we thought about a message that we would convey to the little ladies in our lives.

"Be yourselves for yourselves"

Next we were off to Cahoots. If you are not familiar Cahoots is a bar in Soho, Kingly Court, that looks like a tube station from the 1940's. The entire place is themed and the staff patter is like something out of an old movie.

I had two cocktails (well it was my birthday!) both of which were delicious. I love how each one was served. No expense is spared on the decor in the drinks and beetroot roses mixed with leaves and chilli peppers was the order of the day.

 

Although Cahoots is a little on the expensive side I would definitely go back for a special occasion, tables are booked up well in advance so it's not the kind of place you could treat as your local anyway!

After that we wanted round to Ain't Nothing But The Blues bar to listen to some music and before I knew it I was on a 12.30 tube home, which is a very late night for me these days!

Cheers! 

Until next time
Love
Lucy
xx

Teasmade - Bluebird Tea Co Subscription Box Review

I've been struggling in this cold weather with my making healthy choices resolution. I am a creature of hibernation when it's cold.

To try to encourage myself to drink more fluids and because hot drinks tend to fill me up when I think I am hungry, I decided to try some new herbal teas.

After a bit of research I found that a tea subscription box would be a good way to do this.

I found Bluebird Tea Company online and happily they have an actual store in North London which appeals to me so I could pop in and pick up supplies too.

My first box was this Easter edition box, the beautiful art work on the front was designed by Clara Sais. Subscriptions start at £7.00 per month.

Your first box comes with a tea measure spoon, some drawstring tea bags and three types of tea as well as a Teabirds Guide which explains the different types of tea and the perfect brewing process - this will be handy if you have not used loose leaf tea before.

This months teas were:

Hot Cross Bun - Rooibos, Ceylon black tea, Cinnamon, Hibiscus, Apple, Rosehip, Orange Peel, Lapsang Souchong Tea, Vanilla, Cranberry.

This tea is a beautiful cheery cup, the fruits offset the vanilla perfectly so it doesn't taste too strongly of the vanilla which I usually find overpowering.

Peach Cobbler -Sri Lankan black tea, freeze dried peach, pink cornflowers, natural flavouring

This was a stronger cup that packed a real punch, I preferred it with milk to tame it a little. I could imagine this being nice as an iced tea too, I still have some left so I might have to try this in the future.

Easter Egg Nests -Sri Lankan black tea, cocoa nibs and shells, Japanese Sencha green tea, toasted rice, sunflower petals, vegan marshmallows, natural flavouring.

This tea smells almost like baileys, everyone at the office was asking what smelled so amazing, the tea is fresh and comforting and is lovely in the evening instead of a sweet treat.

I am so happy I signed up for this subscription box as it gives me the chance to try new teas without committing to a large quantity. Of the three I would re order Easter egg nests and hot cross buns as my faves.

Bluebird teas are sometimes limited edition so be speedy about ordering as I can imagine some of these blends are very popular!

Until next time
Love
Lucy
xx