Wednesday 18 April 2018

Purple Haze


I love Wednesdays. It's our official midweek drinking day. White rum, a wedge of fresh lime (ten for a quid off the market), a handful of ice cubes and some diet cola accompanied by a gritty European thriller series. This week we're watching Before We Die and, as is the way with most Swedish dramas I watch, I'll be paying particular attention to the interiors for doll's house design inspiration.


Wednesday is also the day we go charity shopping and today's gloriously warm weather meant that I didn't have to bother with a coat which made me love my day even more. I feel so much more alive with the heat of the sun on my shoulders. Hello, Frank!



I went mad and ditched my boots for sandals, although these aren't the ones I left the house in this morning, I found these tan leather TopShop platforms for £3.99 and insisted on changing into them straight away, much to the amusement of the Banardos staff.



Here's the rest of the bits we picked up and, for the first time this year, I've been able to wash them and peg them outside on the washing line to dry.


CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: 1980s does the 1950s cotton sundress by Hennes; 1980s cotton maxi with knit bodice; 1980s jumpsuit; Almatrichi of Spain peacock print cotton shift (not vintage but gorgeous!); 1960s Crimplene mini dress; 1970s needlecord smock top (I might have to keep this); 1960s petal collar mod raincoat; 1950s cotton camisole; 1960s silver sandals; high heeled polka dot wellies (festival stock!) ; Daks blazer

I love this hefty book on daily Indian wisdom Jon found for 49p.



So what room in my doll's house am I matching today? Today's purple and blue Dollyrocker's maxi co-ordinates perfectly with the living room.


I love this 1970s-inspired wallpaper so much that I've decided to paper our real house with it. 


The dining table & chairs, glass topped coffee table and dresser are all original '70s Lundby. I replaced the grubby chair cushions with leftover doll's house carpet and painted the previously mahogany dresser white.


The Gustavian style clock is another original Lundby piece, I bought when I was 10 back in 1976 and I'd still buy it now, 42 years later. My tastes have never changed.


The details:


  • Vintage vinyl, download from a doll's house website.
  • Trechikoff  & Walter Lambert prints - I found 30 of these mini wooden frames in a charity shop on Monday for £1.50 which I first painted white and then gilded, I do love a blingy picture frame.
  • Pendant light made from two lids and a plug chain.
  • Old school cassettes - I took a photo of some of Jon's gazillion mix tapes which I scaled down and glued onto cardboard.
  • Cox's apples in a pewter fruit bowl.

Plants made from sellotape & gardening wire and painted with nail polish.


I made the retro cocktail bar from kitchen foil, cardboard, toothpicks and dressmaking pins and covered it with prints of marble, Formica and a vintage NYC skyline. The light box was from Linda (the inspiration behind my doll's house obsession).

WEARING: 1970s Dollyrockers by Samuel Sherman gauzy cotton maxi (Second To None, Walsall, 2010) with a vintage Egyptian Revival gold plated, lapis lazuli pendant by Thomas Fattorini & Sons, Birmingham (part of a set Jon bought me for my 50th birthday)

Cheers, all! See you soon.

67 comments:

  1. Your gorgeous maxi dress and matching dollhouse are so perfectly purple lovely!!!! Those platform sandals are a score!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I'm so glad pointy shoes are in fashion, the charity shops are full of bastard massive platforms - my kinda footwear! xxx

      Delete
  2. Ok, my favorite thing is the cocktail bar! Love it - and the stereo with albums. Nailed it again!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you!! I was amazed it ended up looking like it did, I thought it might be a bit too ambitious to execute! xxx

      Delete
  3. Looks more lavender blue, dilly dilly to me!
    Walter Lambert was who I was trying to think of the other day...he did some horse paintings that a cousin of mine collected.
    I wallpaper my house in that print too!
    xox

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh dear, lavender reminds me of elderly ladies on a coach trip, say it isn't so!
      I've a bit of a fetish for crazy wallpaper, I've been trying to find the right one for ages but this is definitely it! xxx

      Delete
  4. Isn't the weather gorgeous, I've left the door open all day today. You look lovely in purple, it really suits you and it looks so summery in those great garden shots.
    The wallpaper will look fabulous on your real walls, I hope you share it when it's done!xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was sceptical first thing this morning as it was drizzly and grey but yes, it's been wonderful. the kind of day that makes you glad to be alive. Long may it last!
      I can't wait to get the dining room done. We're waiting on a man to refit the shower in the room upstairs - plumbers don't half take their time! xxx

      Delete
  5. Isn't it fantastic to be out in about without a coat! I'm loving your gauzy purple and blue Dollyrockers frock, and what a brilliant pair of sandals, although I'm not sure I'd be able to walk in them. The lapis lazuli pendant is stunning! So is the doll's house living room, and oh, that wallpaper will look fantastic in your real house. How brilliant are the cassettes and the vinyl. But no Smiths? xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They're really comfy, honestly! The ladies in the charity shop are horrified by how high my heels are (I bet my orthopedic surgeon would be, too!)
      I hate to have to admit this but Jon was never a fan of The Smiths even though he saw them play a couple of times. He's punk all the way! xxx

      Delete
  6. groooovy!!!
    the purple salon and you in that dress and stunning necklace - and your newest sandals are fab! have fun with the rum!
    xxxxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Beate! Just waiting for Jon to finish watching some VW restoration video on YouTube and then the rum can be poured. Cheers! xxx

      Delete
  7. Your excitement about decorating these doll houses has reved me up about my people house. Luckily, my husband is happy when I'm happy so he won't mind that I'm about to teach him to hang wall paper!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like your husband, K! He's a keeper. I can't wait to get this wallpaper hanging in my real house! xxx

      Delete
  8. I am very impressed with you crafting abilities. I gasped when I read you made the plants from tape and nail polish.

    If you ever decide to slip your skills to life-sized endeavours, let me know! I need another carpenter!

    Happy thrifting ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I was amazed how well those plants turned out, anything is possible in doll's house world! xxx

      Delete
  9. That frock is dreamy...I'd say it was mauve, is that better than lavender?
    Those bastard massive platforms are a brilliant find and look fab. I know, I'm getting excited about hanging the washing out tomorrow...what a sad f...er! Xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mauve, that's a word I haven't heard in a long time!! I can't resist a pair of bastard massive platforms, Topshop's are usually very comfy, too. Win win!
      I love drying my washing on the line. xxx

      Delete
  10. There's nothing better than laundry drying on the line. Still waiting for spring here-it snowed again today.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There isn't , is there? I love towels that have been line dried, all scratchy and stiff! xxx

      Delete
  11. you got Spring! Never heard of Before We Die, I'll have to look for it. It's strange to me that countries with low murder rates( Norway, Sweden) have so many great crime dramas

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have - at long last! We have an entire Freeview channel dedicated the subtitled European thrillers, I've got loads of recommendations which I'm sure are available on Netflix. xxx

      Delete
  12. You look the essence of spring in your lavender frock. And that scarab necklace is amazing. But the living room doll house is fantastic. Now, what about the speakers...how were they made. Did I miss that part? And I luv the telephone.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Pao. Jon's got great taste.
      I found that crazy silver stereo on the clearance page on a doll's house website. At £1.25 I thought it was okay to cheat and buy it! xxx

      Delete
  13. What an absolutely lovely frock. That colour is amazing and it was just perfect for this weather. I love your new sandals and coordinating toes. You find the best things in the chazzas. Frank is really cute and if he is anything like Mittens will be taking full advantage of the better weather to go out killing stuff. :)
    I love your dolls house makeover and am very impressed in your taste in tiny vinyl. I always thought that cover of "Are You Experienced?" was the absolute mutts. Why don't men dress like that any more? Have you heard the Patti Smith cover? Brilliance. Enjoy the good weather and I am also sad enough to be *really* looking forward to getting the washing out at the weekend. :) Xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jimi was a god, wasn't he? The gatefold sleeve for Axis:Bold As Love is an absolute beauty. I adore Patti Smith, I've seen her four times and she just gets better and better!
      Frank and Stephen are out there now, bothering the wildlife and checking which interlopers have left messages for them overnight.
      I love this weather, more washing on the line today. It's not sad at all. xxx

      Delete
  14. Love that dress and those sandals...what a find.

    The living room looks fantastic. I used to have a lampshade like that but mine was orange and brown...yuck :)
    Hugs-x-

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Sheila! It feels good to wear sandals after so long.
      I don't mind a bit of brown in my wardrobe but I wouldn't fancy furnishing my house in it, that's a step too far into the 70s! xxx

      Delete
  15. Can I move in and borrow your purple dress? The hosue and you are ready for an evening of cocktails and entertainment.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Okay, you can send me that necklace, and those sandals, and that Crimplene dress, please and thank you! Wonderful purple room (love the vinyl and cassettes!). I just love looking at everything.

    Frank kitty!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What a shame we live an ocean away and can't share our stuff!
      Frank says hello, he's out enjoying some early morning sunshine and bothering the birds! xxx

      Delete
  17. The attention to detail is phenomenal in your doll's house. Plants out of sellotape?! You look fab in that purple dress and I love the new sandals. Topshop always has good platforms. Xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much! I always snap up Toppers platforms if I find them in charity shops, they're always comfy! xxx

      Delete
  18. ohhhh, you look fabulous in your purple dress!, such an awesome dress and such a lovely sunny day to go thrifting!, and cool sandals too (I can't even dream on wearing those fab platforms!)
    And so fantastic living room, I love every detail, the vinyls and tapes, the cute cocktail bar, the wallpaper fabulousness!! You totally rock!
    besos

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I spent most of last year in low heels and flats, I think the break did me good, I'm fine in heels again now!! xxx

      Delete
  19. The doll's house is looking good - which room in your real house are you planning to use the wallpaper in?

    I hadn't realised Jon got you a whole set of scarab jewellery. That pendant really is wonderful, so eye catching and rich in colour.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It'll go in the dining room (aka doll's house workshop), the one with the giant Smiths poster. We had a leak in the bathroom upstairs and need a man that can to refit the shower before doing any decorating before we start prettifying.
      It was a choker and bangle set. I've since found earrings to match but Jon got very lucky with those, I'd have to sell a kidney to afford the rest! xxx

      Delete
  20. That wallpaper is rather spectacular!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Isn't it? It's the perfect mix of Victorian and psychedelia, my favourite combination! xxx

      Delete
  21. Frank looks like he’s looking at the dobbing great platforms and heels on your shoes hee hee.
    The purple is truly wonderful in your dolls house and the dollyrocker dress. Big thumbs up from us two.
    The sun has got his hat on at last for us all. Enjoy it lovely people xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Frank's very worried about my choice of clothing, my sleeves are too wafty and my bangles are too clanky!
      Glad you live the latest room, I think it's my favourite so far!
      Isn't it glorious? It's certainly lifted our spirits! xxxx

      Delete
  22. Wow! I think this is one of my favourite rooms in your dollhouse obsession. I cannot wait to see that wallpaper in your real house.

    That dress is stunning.

    We are still in frozen tundra here. My backyard looks like a glacier after the ice storm and snow. The pug has to slide around to go to the bathroom. It is so damn depressing.

    Suzanne
    http://www.suzannecarillo.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I hyperventilated when I found that wallpaper, I've been looking for something to replace the stuff in the dining room for ages. Wouldn't it be a fab print for a dress?
      I'm keeping everything crossed that you get some decent weather soon. These last two days have made such a difference to everyone's mood and sanity! xxx

      Delete
  23. The cats are tiptoeing from one frozen clump of sod to another, still wearing winter coats -- and so am I. How wonderful to see you in sandals again, Vix! A welcome sign of spring in the hemisphere, indeed.

    The bar is your masterpiece to date. The staging is cinematic fibbing at its finest: clever you in the foreground, holding a real bottle to maintain the scale!

    How is dear old Jacob? Have you spotted a tortoise to dwell in your dollhouse?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh dear, I'll send some of our heatwave over to you. It makes such a difference to see blue skies and feel warm!
      You must have missed it but I do have a mini Jacob - he's currently in the other doll's house. I'll have to move him in when this house is finished! xxx

      Delete
  24. That Grandpa's clock is most adorable! I'm sure I would also loved it as a little girl and of course now. Some things never change, that's so true. You look like a Spring fairy in your floaty purple dress - and the new shoes are a bomb! Fairy on platforms, that's our Vix. Such an enjoyable look into your mini home - the little details such as plants, music players and speakers are especially impressive. Love seeing you on fire and in good spirit! <3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like being a fairy on platforms, that's a fab description! xxx

      Delete
  25. Great post! I love the sandles. Your new finds are great as well.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Thanks, Shelagh! I'm loving not having to wear boots! xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes it's so good to have a sunny day at last. Hope the camera is ok and you are mastering it.

      Delete
  27. You are looking gorgeous Viv. I am almost getting confused as to which house you live in. Love lavender so that wall paper is a real find. Such a beautiful necklace. Xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Sally! Our proper house is a lot tattier but we will crack on with decorating soon! xxx

      Delete
  28. Hi Vix, that is the best dress and necklace combination! I love it! I remember reading about it on your blog when you were saying that Jon bought the necklace as a gift but I didn't realise how big and fab it was until seeing it on you. Xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jess! It's an amazing piece, isn't it? I want to wear it all the time but I discipline myself to a few times a month to make it feel extra special. xxx

      Delete
  29. Love the dress - it looks amazing on you! xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Sarah. I love it more each time I get it out of the wardrobe! xxx

      Delete
  30. I don't know how you can stand, much less walk, in towering platforms like those! That lilac dress is so pretty on you and the massive necklace fits into the neckline just perfectly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They're really comfy, honest! I think the platform balances the height of the heel.Toppers shoes are expensive new, I can understand why, they're well designed.
      Isn't that necklace huge? I think most people have a conversation with it rather than me! xxx

      Delete
  31. Dear Vic,

    I love your blog. You inspire me to dress the way I want, irregardless of what other people would say. Also, what's life without colourful dresses and eye-catching accessories?

    Last year I went to Morecambe Vintage By The Sea fair and found a wonderful Harrods white shirt. I tried it on but it was a bit tight so I forgot about it. Until last week, when I read your blog and thought, well, how about combining this with a piece of batek sarong which is a Malaysian (and Indonesian) pride and joy? And the shirt fits! I have a photo here from my instagram account: https://www.instagram.com/p/BhwQJrpDHiA/?taken-by=n00rbaizura

    You never know who you influence just by being your best self. I just want to thank you for wonderful posts. Your appreciation of vintage materials made me appreciate my own clothes.

    Love from Lancaster,
    Zura x
    p/s: I'm originally from Malaysia, now studying at Lancaster Uni :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for your lovely comment, Zura. I'm thrilled to find you on IG and absolutely love your style, your mix of vintage and traditional batek is inspired!
      I hope I get to trade up North and meet you this year. We're doing Wayne Hemingway's event in London this weekend, I'll ask him about Morecombe Vintage By The Sea when I see him. xxx

      Delete
  32. Do you have beaded curtains in your mini houses yet? My mum had beaded curtains when I was little. You’d have loved her flat 😁 xxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's a fab idea, I'll make some for the next house! xxx

      Delete
  33. How did I miss a purple post?!?! Purplicious! xx

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for reading and for leaving a message. Please don't be anonymous, I'd love it if you left a name (or a nom de plume).

Lots of love, Vix