Don't You Forget About Me

Thank you, thank you, thank you for the wonderful comments and well wishes for my forthcoming trip to India! I'm deeply touched by all of the lovely people who took the trouble to leave a comment. Thanks to all my 118 followers....I honestly never believed that anyone would be interested in my witterings and I'm well and truly taken back by it all.

Dress (Sample stall on market £3), Vintage 1960's suede jerkin (Car Boot sale £1), Yellow tights (the lovely Alex ), Tan gladiators (Matalan £6), Silver bangles and rings (India), Earrings (Charity shop 99p)

If you're still following when I get back on 30th April your patience will be amply rewarded....keep watching this space for a super-dooper first time blog GIVEAWAY!!!

Another reason for my big smile is that this sight is awaiting me....

.....sheer paradise and a balmy 34 degrees, too!

Thanks for your support!

See you soon,

Vix

xxx

I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself...

Blimey, my organisational skills have surpassed all expectations. I'd started the day with a huge "To-Do" list and I've already finished it, even managing to squeeze in a long chat with my darling Helga and popping out for coffee with a mate.

The cats are acting like they know we're leaving them, following us around the house and playing weird. Stephen Squirrel managed to get himself stuck between the duvet and the cover whilst I was changing the bed whilst Polly Piglet has tried to get into my holdall.

I've sorted my holiday jewellery....

Three tribal chokers, toe rings, tribal anklets, 10 pairs of earrings plus my usual silver bangles & rings.

...and my make-up bag.

Clarins make-up mirror, No 7 highlighter, Bourjois pencil sharpener, No 7 black eyeliner, Indian kohl pencil, 2 x Benefit lipglosses and a Bobbi Brown creme blush/lip pencil packed away in my vintage toilet bag.

The holdalls are locked, luggage tags written and we've got a whole day left!

My roots are tinted, toe nails painted and eyebrows plucked. I've just got to apply some semi-permanent eyelashes and I'm good to go.

So it's chilling out, hippy-style, resisting the temptation to tear open my bag and squeeze another frock in the gap.

Crimplene maxi, knee-high boots and vintage leather jacket (all charity shop finds).

Something I made myself (and a bit more packing)

We're off out for tea tonight to celebrate my pal, Liz's birthday. She made me this amazing net bag for my birthday so it seems only right to use it in her honour. I knocked the dress up from a vintage curtain I found at a jumble sale. The fabric is far too fabulous just for cushions.

The both bangles were charity shop finds and the fringed Urban Outfitters necklace cost me 50p at a car boot sale, the £30 store tag was still attached, bargain!

Thanks for the interest in my holiday packing. I've sorted my toiletries out today:

• Soltan Once - Factors 30 and 15
• Soltan Once facial cream - Factor 25
• Aftersun 
• Lush Jungle solid conditioner and Karma shampoo (great for handwashing clothes)
• Nail polish and eye make-up remover wipes (not very green but space saving and spill resistant)
• Solid crystal deodorant
• Lush cleanser
• Sudocreme (for treating sunburn, insect bites and spots)
• Hand sanitiser
• Mozzie repellent (The Indian version is much cheaper and effective so I stock up when I get there)
• Small tube of toothpaste (Very cheap to buy in India and ayurvedic, too)
• Razor (I can buy more if needed)
• Cotton buds
• Dental Floss
• Tweezers
• Scissors
• Lip Balm
• Wide toothed comb
• Contraceptive pills

And just in case you thought I was a total philistine here's my holiday reading pile:

There's a decent book exchange in the village so I'll be trading this little lot in once I've read them, probably after a couple of weeks. Have you read any of these? What did you think?

Travelling Light

Have I mentioned that I'm off to spend a month in Goa? A follower asked me what I took with me so as I spent most of yesterday packing my bag I thought I'd share my tried and trusted capsule wardrobe. I travel light, rarely weighing in at more than 12kgs at check-in.

Left to right: Vintage 70's halterneck (eBay), Vintage polyester empire-cut (jumble sale), Van Allan cotton spot (eBay), "Woodstock" strapless (Market stall)

Firstly, my maxi dresses. As the temperature rarely dips below 40 degrees they offer a touch of glam,  are fuss-free and no undies required.  I wear them during the day with my hair done up in a big flower-accesorised bun and some oversized sunglasses or at moonlit beach parties with loose damp hair, smudgy eyeliner, Bollywood chandelier earrings and bare feet.

From left: Vintage romper-dress (Mum), Dollyrockers maxi (eBay), Silk maxi (India), Strapless jumpsuit (charity shop)

I take two full length skirts which I wear during the day with ribbed vests and my trusty denim waistcoat. They are a bit more modest if I'm visiting my Goan friends or for shopping at the local market. The all-in-one romper dress and the strapless jumpsuit are perfect for popping on over a bikini for a day at the beach.

Black cotton hareems and aubergine silk hareems (both bought in India)

I wear the hareems with vests for yoga and long early morning walks along the seashore. 

From left: Vests (all car boot finds), French Connection kaftan (Charity shop), Lilac tee-shirt dress (India), Waistcoat (15 years old)

I take three vests in dark colours as they don't show up the dust and sweat stains. Indian laundries are brilliant but pale coloured clothes always return a strange shade of ginger. A long sleeved top is essential if I'm walking in the heat of the midday sun or visiting temples and non-touristy areas. The assymmetric hemmed vest is great for slouching about after a shower. My vintage denim waistcoat comes with me everywhere, I love it to bits.

I take two pairs of leather sandals, a pretty pair for nights out and a plain pair for the day. Both were made to measure and cost me less than £2 a pair. I usually get a couple of pairs made up for me each year. My rubber flip-flips are for wearing in the shower.

My hessian tote serves as both hand luggage and a beach bag, the vintage saddle bag is for day use and the patchwork purse for nights out (just the right size for a torch, mozzie repellent and loo roll).

I take three bikinis, some pretties for my hair, a couple of pairs of sunglasses (as I always manage to loose a pair), a money belt for when I'm catching trains and in busy areas and a silk scarf for wrapping round my head. A selection of sarongs are essential, not only as bikini cover-ups but also for lying on the sand, as a towels or a make-shift sun shade.

What do you think, am I taking too much or not enough? 

Things Making Me Smile Today....

  

....Painting my toenails sunshine yellow.

A delivery from Lush.

Planting my spring windowboxes.

Jacob enjoying a post-hibernation lettuce.

Evidence of spring in the garden.

A pile of unread books.

An award by the fabulous Sabine!

What's making you smile?

Name Dropping

 Trying to cheer up yet another wet saturday afternoon I browsed eBay and spotted this "Dollyrockers by Sambo" skirt. My heart beat rapidly, I went hot all over and my palms were clammy, not only my dream label and colourway but in my size, too! 

As we were off out for the night I popped a snipe in for my maximum bid. I could hardly think of anything else all evening and the minute we got back in the house, even in my inebriated state, I raced to check the computer. I never for a moment thought that nobody else would bid on it and I'd win it for 99p!!!!

It turned up this morning, every bit as beautiful and perfect as I'd hoped and it's so coming to Goa with me next week. We grasped a rare break in the rain to rush outside and take a few snaps in the wilderness we call our garden.

I'm wearing the skirt with my trusty denim waistcoat, a ribbed vest and some beaded earrings I picked up from the Auroville Ashram in Pondicherry, India.

I spotted these fab shoes in the window of a charity shop in town earlier, labelled "Bruno Magli" and priced at £3 I'd have been mad not to, quite frankly!

If you're ever in need of information on a vintage clothing label you can't get do much better than

consult this useful website. Thanks for the top tip, Jem.

Tonight's plans have been scuppered as our fab friend, Adrian's gone down with the lurgy for his birthday so it looks like a night in with another of my favourite labels, Bacardi.

Have a fab night!

Riders On The Storm

I've never been near a horse but I've been hankering after a pair of jodhpurs for a while. Perhaps it's my obsession with India and the days of the Raj. I can just envisage myself reclining on a shady terrace on a little wooden bungalow in Shimla whilst a wallah brings me pitchers of ice cold Bombay Sapphire with Indian tonic water.

My wish came true today when, at a somewhat muddy car boot sale, I retrieved these beauties from a battered cardboard box. It was love at first sight and my pound coin was handed over without any attempt at haggling.

The whip-stitched suede patches and adjustable velcro hems are to die for and as for the buttons...perfection on a plate.

I'm wearing them with lace tights, thrifted heeled brogues and an Edwardian looking pussy-bow jacket I snapped up the other Friday for less than £2. The vintage leather gloves were jumble sale finds.

I've partially put my hair up in a topknot. Mum found the fascinator in a clearance bin. The jet earrings were from a charity shop.

I also managed to find the perfect quirky shade for my vintage horse head lamp. It was 50p and sets the beauty off a treat.

Super Shopper

Like my dear friend Helga , I just have to dress up for the supermarket dash. Why, oh why, do women insist on pushing their trollies down the aisles dressed in grubby jersey and ugg-ly boots? The supermarket is the one place you're almost guaranteed to bump into an ex, your old boss or even the school bully (who, incidentally, send me a friend request on Facebook this morning...no way, honey!) The only way that you can face these people is by feeling fabulous.

I won this vintage "Harriet of London" waistcoat on eBay at the weekend for the princely sum of £1.70 (with £2 postage). My hair is in dire need of a wash hence the beret.

The shorts are a pair of revamped gent's evening pants.

I found these English-made vintage handbags in my local hospice shop for £2.95 yesterday. The green one had a pair of matching gloves and a make-up mirror tucked inside. I spotted the shoes in Debenhams. Both pairs had been marked down in the Blue Cross Sale and with a gift card that had been knocking around in my purse for months the total purchase price came to £4!

This pretty 1970's era maxi dress was another eBay win over the weekend, it cost £2.24 (with postage) and it fits like a dream.

Big love to the beautiful Em for the mention yesterday. Her blog and utter passion for fashion make me smile. Cheers, darling!