I found this old school photo this morning, taken when I was 18 and just about to sit my A Levels....40 years ago! Same hairstyle, same Barry M lipstick and, if you look closely, you'll see the sleeve of Phool dress I was wearing, even as a teenager my outfits were either ethnic/Indian gear from off the market or vintage clothes bought from church jumble sales.
Jumble sales are a rarity around here these days but I continue to get my vintage/ethnic clothes fix from Vinted and charity shops (not a common sight on the high street when I was young). On Monday, along with an 1970s Anokhi block printed maxi skirt (eBay, 2020), I wore a Bhanuni by Jyoti blouse with sequins and metallic thread I found for £6 on Vinted last year, which the seller bought from Anthropologie for £135.
This Dilli Grey dress which I wore on Tuesday was bought new in 2022 and I expect it will outlive me, the quality is astonishing with pockets, fully cotton lined and French seams.
These crazy sunglasses were 50p from Age UK before Xmas.
After a frosty start its been a glorious day today and I was finally able to give the vintage Kashmiri embroidered jacket an outing when I walked down the road to drop off my Vinted sales in the lockers. The kaftan is vintage 1960s and by India Imports of Rhode Island (bought from my friend Molly of Vintage Relics). The Monsoon fedora was £3 from a charity shop.
As a teenager I was always tinkering with the clothes I bought from jumble sales, altering or dyeing them to make them more "me" or patching up holes and tears - something I'm still doing 40 years later. Here's three of my very fragile vintage Indian dresses I've recently mended. I'll use anything that vaguely matches, the repair on the Amber dress used to be a canvas tote bag!
I'm off to catch up with blogs and comments, see you soon !
Vix you look as gorgeous today as you did at 18! I love your unique style and thrifty ways. Since moving to Bulgaria 10 years ago I too stock 98% of my wardrobe with 2nd hand clothes. I cannot go back! Regards, Lise
ReplyDeleteHello Lise! Thanks for your kind words. You've got me very interested in Bulgaria, is there a good second hand scene there? It sounds like there is if you can stock so much of your wardrobe with second hand clothing....as she runs off to Google cheap flights to Sofia......
DeleteLoads of 2nd hand stores stocked from all over Europe.
DeleteLoads of second hand shops stocked from all over Europe at low prices. xx
DeleteYour smile hadn't changed a bit! Hard imagining you with lighter hair, but either way, fabulous.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Sam! xxx
DeleteYou really haven't changed much at all Vix - Just your hair colour really - How Do you do it ? xx
ReplyDeleteI think it's all down to good lighting! Thanks, Flis! xxx
DeleteAw, young Vix is a cutie!!!
ReplyDeleteI love your £6 bargain and the new jacket looks beautiful!
I've always liked flowing skirts and florals since being a teenager! I think things like that will never change!
Thanks, Kezzie! I'm always sad when women ditch feminine clothes for practical, drab stuff! I'll always be a girly dresser! xxx
DeleteThe outfit with the monsoon fedora looks great, I especially love the color.
ReplyDeleteAt 18 you had such a lovely smile and it has remained so until today <3
Thanks so much, Andrea! xxx
DeleteLove the photos! another clothes alterer here! I remember putting artistic bleach splashes on a t shirt, didn't realise you were meant to wash it off....big holes! hehehe x
ReplyDeleteHello Lisa - I did exactly the same when I attempted to bleach a denim jacket back in the 1980s, more hole than fabric! xxx
DeleteI did still wear it though, under a longline grandad vest!!! Thankfully there were no pictures x
DeleteYou look fab Vicky xx Lovely to see a younger you .. I’m a similar age I look back at photos and think where has time gone to .. xx
ReplyDeleteThank you! It is scary how quickly time goes, isn't it? I still remember sitting for that photo (and hating it when it was printed!) xxx
DeleteFirst of all I must say that the person holding the photo does not seem to have 40 years more than the girl in the photo, absolutely not. As for your clothing style, I like when people mantain certain habits, I also did, not when dressing because I was a disaster in my adolescence or until I earned my money and afford buying stuff of my liking. The ethnic and vintage style are some of the most beautiful and memorable I have ever tried, I like them especially during summer because they are comfortable, fascinating, feminine but not too revealing. The outfits you showed us here are gorgeous and I would wear them all without second guessing.
ReplyDeleteI am happy to discover your blog, very interesting articles and very fascinating way of writing.
Thanks so much for those kind words, it's lovely to meet you! xxx
DeleteYou look just as lovely today. Beautiful clothes as always, I love the sunglasses. Regards Sue H
ReplyDeleteAwww, thanks Sue! xxx
DeleteYour younger you! Almost a twin. Recently i, too, have been looking at my much younger photos. I was rather shocked at seeing them again after a period of time. My junior high and high school photos were astonishing to me -- i told my cousin that i was surprised to see that i was rather attractive then. Her response to me was "of course, you were" but that is not how i remember those years. maybe because i was so self-conscious about my looks that it helped me to develop other interests rather than focusing on looks during that time.
ReplyDeletekirsten
Thanks, Kristen! Funnily enough, your thoughts on how you looked back in your schooldays echoed mine. I never considered myself to be anything special and always followed my mum's advice of being interesting rather than worrying about prettiness! xxx
DeleteBeautiful then and beautiful now. So impressed that you already had your style nailed at 18. I think I’ve been through (and continue to go through) so many different phases. I think I’m starting to find my style identity just about now, well for now at least xxx
ReplyDeleteYou are sweet, Louise! You always look stylish in all the outfits you've worn in the years and years I've known you! xxx
DeleteI love seeing old pictures! You have barely aged, Vix (that's what not having kids will do! ha!). Love that you've done so much mending and fixing of your wardrobe - I aim to do more of that with my own this year.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Sheila! Some people think we're mad for not having kids - I think we're the sane ones! xxx
DeleteHow lovely you look both now and then! you definitely were not meant to be born blonde, that's for sure Vix! you haven't changed much over the years. I am just doing a post and found a pic of me in my younger days by coincidence, if only wisdom didn't come with age - the mistakes we have made (and learned from!). It is so good to have such a strong sense of self and style. I have seen a lot about Twiggy with the forthcoming film in the press - she's a great example of someone who has aged with beauty and has a great sense of style. I have met her although she wouldn't remember me - she was a model by then, older than me - I was a 14 year old living in Twickenham , her name was Leslie then, she sometimes popped home to see her mum who had cups of tea with my mum as they lived in our road - if only I had a photo I would make my fortune! Betty x
ReplyDeleteHello Betty! I so much prefer my hair dark, I wish I'd have dyed it years ago. I'm off to a school reunion later in the year, I wonder if anyone will recognise me?!
DeleteI love Twiggy, I bet that film will be a great watch. What a claim to fame having met her when you were 14, she really was the face (and legs!) of the 1960s.
I hope you share that old photo of you. xxx
Love the way that you make everything uniquely your own. And especially love your innovative mending
ReplyDeleteThank you so much! Mending is so rewarding! xxx
DeleteYou haven't changed at all, except for the colour of your hair. Even after all these years I'm still amazed that you're actually a natural blonde, as your current hair colour suits you to a t!
ReplyDeleteYour outfits are fabulous, as always. That vintage 1960s kaftan is such an unusual colour on you, but it definitely suits you, particularly paired with that stunning embroidered Kashmiri jacket! xxx
Thanks, Ann! I wished I had dyed my hair years ago, I always used to envy girls their dark hair and felt my own was so insipid and dull!
DeleteI bought that kaftan with the intention of selling it because I wasn't sure about the colour but it so many people stop and tell me how lovely it is I've been convinced to keep it! xxx
Oh, so great to see a pic of you back then. You are amazing. Staying so true to yourself in fashion and more. Love these dresses. You are always so inspiring! Love seeing your creativity! I always enjoy reading your adventures and fashion stories. 🌸🌸🌈🌈🌈💛💛💛💛This week, in the heartland we had a blizzard blast that has left us in snow after a rocking St. Patty's with such amazing summer weather. WE are in a weird weather pattern for sure. Wishing you a lots of happiness this month and beyond. Thanks so much for reading and your comments!
ReplyDeleteYou say the sweetest things, Ellie! the weather has been so strange of late, I'm glad you were able to celebrate St Patricks before you were plunged into Winter once again! xxx
DeleteGreat photos and as everyone else had said, it doesn’t look like 40 years between the two photos. Catriona
ReplyDeleteThank you for those lovely words, Catriona! xxx
DeleteLove your style. Great mending. I love mending clothes.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Marjorie! There's something so satisfying about mending, isn't there? I'm so glad its becoming acceptable for mending to be visible, too. I like clothes to have a history, it gives them personality! xxx
DeleteLoved seeing 18 year old you Vix , other than your hair colour you haven't changed a bit. I always find it hard to believe you were a natural blonde. Interesting that you established your personal style at such a young age. Always admire your style choices. I too am a mender but very much simpler with limited sewing skills.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jill! I was definitely born with the wrong hair colour. I was the only blond in the family and all kinds of aspersions were cast at my poor mother when I was little! xxx
DeleteHi Vix, many thanks for sharing with us the photo of your younger self. As others have commented you really haven't changed that much in those years and your innate sense of style remains intact. It confirms to me that style is something instinctive and cannot be taught. Anyone can buy what is currently fashionable in the shops at any given moment but few people know at an early age what really suits them and are able to naturally evolve that sense of style with the passing years. You obviously have that gift. I love too how you care for your fragile and much-loved pieces like old friends. I particularly like the Dilli Grey beauty and the Kashmiri embroidered jacket. It is a pity that jumble sales are no longer so popular. I too used to love going along as a child and bringing home my ' treasures' to show my Mum, though I think she thought my purchases were a load of tat! She now admits though that I do find some surprisingly nice pieces at the charity shops.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Alysia! That's such a kind thing to say.
DeleteI had so much fun at jumbles as a child, like you, my Mum & Grandma were often perplexed at my choices but I think being given free reign to buy what I liked helped me hone my tastes.
Charity shops are still a wealth of riches, I don't always find treasure but that's what makes it exciting, isn't it? xxx
Ahhhh........ I have a new tablet and it's so nice to catch up with your latest posts!!
ReplyDeleteGreat to see you again, Chrystal! Happy new tablet! xxx
DeleteYou look almost exactly the same. The same smile and all. Just different hair colour. I think it's also cool how in some of these photographs, the natural blond of your hair comes out especially when captured by the light, it looks like you have highlights or what was that trend called with lighter edges- ombre? Anyway, your hair looks great both curly and straight.
ReplyDeleteI love your maxi dresses and maxi skirt outfits. Fabulous collection of hats, too!
Thanks, Ivana! x
DeleteI went to a Twiggy book signing at some gallery in London a few years ago to buy her new book and to get it signed for my sister who.had always admired her. Anyways, queued up (monitored by a big burly geezer), waited patiently for my turn and asked her to write a wee message inside wishing my sister a happy birthday. Well she rather snottily replied 'I'm not writing all that'! and proceeded to sign her name and hand the book back to me! If I hadn't already paid for it, I'd have told her where to shove her book, sideways!My bestie and me still laugh about it every time Twiggy's name crops up! You look utterly fabulous in both pics.xx
ReplyDeleteGoodness me, Twiggy's gone right down in my estimations. x
DeleteLove your style and attitude and love that you've been rocking it since a teenager. So gorgeous in your vintage outfits, that embroidered jacket is fab, same that Dilli Grey dress (such a fabulous piece!, those colours and quality!).
ReplyDeleteGreat job on mending those vintage pieces, that's something we all do even if not so skilled!
besos
Thanks, Monica! x
DeleteOh my gosh, I love that first photo! You haven't changed one bit. X
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jess! x
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