Fashion Museum Treasures...

The Fashion Museum came to Bath as the Museum of Costume in 1963.  

"A museum is a collection of precious objects, and this souvenir book showcases treasures in the Fashion Museum collection.  From the beautiful embroidered pieces of the 17th century to the show-stopping ensembles from the world's most famous fashion designers at the beginning of the 21st century, these pieces give visitors the opportunity to discover more about fashion, and to marvel at the beauty of the design and the exquisite craftsmanship of the work."

♥

Close the door behind you.....

One of my favorite places in all of Australia is Hobart, Tasmania.  If you ever get the chance to come to Australia, make sure you include a visit to this beautiful town and state.  There are now a couple of airlines, Virgin Blue and Jetstar, that fly regular, relatively inexpensive, services to Hobart and Launceston daily from either Sydney or Melbourne.  My husband and I love Tasmania so much that we plan to retire to Hobart in a few years.  I can hardly wait!

I think one of the reasons I love Hobart so much is that, as far as trees and climate go, it reminds me of back home in the States.  The air in wintertime is very cold and crisp thanks to its close proximity to Antarctica.  The trees have leaves that change colors.  People wear beautiful wool sweaters and the wood fires are kept burning.  It's absolutely glorious in the wintertime!

The place to be is downtown near the old wharves at Salamanca Place and the neighboring residential area, Battery Point.  There are several nice places to stay in the neighborhood, including The Lenna, which also has apartments right in Salamanca Place.  We've stayed in the hotel a couple of times, but we really preferred the apartments because we were able to buy fantastic food from places like The Wursthaus Kitchen and cook for ourselves.   The Lenna now has a couple of penthouse apartments on top of the hotel, which would, undoubtedly, have spectacular views of the harbour and the Derwent River.  One of the best things about staying in Battery Point is that you don't really need a car, you can easily walk to the market, shops and cafes in both Battery Point and Salamanca Place.

If you do come to Tasmania, be sure to arrange your stay so that you can visit the Salamanca Market at Salamanca Place on Saturday morning.   Rain or shine, the market is on!  There are stalls selling everything from organic vegetables, flowers, gorgeous woolen items, wood crafts, food, and of course, most importantly for me, vintage clothing.   There are also many stores and cafes in the old wharf buildings, as well.  My favorite shop is Fellini, which sells the loveliest men's Italian clothing.  I love shopping there for my husband!  Of course, they sell women's clothing and Italian shoes, and I must confess, I have done a bit of shopping for myself there.  I just cannot resist Italian shoes.......

One of my best memories of Hobart is of one cold winter Saturday morning, strolling through the market, being serenaded by a group of Chilean musicians.  There is a large community of Chileans who originally came to Tasmania to pick apples in the orchards southwest of Hobart in the Derwent Valley.

On every visit there I walk around taking photos and I just love the doors and windows of the gorgeous old Georgian homes in Battery Point.  They are all the colors of the rainbow.  Here's a small collection of some I took on my last trip to Hobart.

And here's a couple windows and gardens to round out the tour.  Don't you just love the lace curtains?

So, ya'll come on down to the SOUTHERNMOST part of Australia!  I promise you, you'll just love it!

♥

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe...

I just couldn't resist sharing the yummiest book ever written about vintage shoes:  The Seductive Shoe, Four Centuries of Fashion Footwear by Jonathan Walford, published by Thames & Hudson in 2007.  There are 429 color illustrations in this gorgeous reference book, plus shoe history for everyone who loves vintage fashion.

Wouldn't you LOVE to own just one pair of these little beauties???  It would be so hard to choose! 

American Purple Silk Brocade Evening Pumps with Cut Steel Buckles, c. 1927-1931

English Blue Silk Shoes With Italian Heels, c. 1785-1789

German Striped Ticking Linen with a German Heel, c. 1775-1780

American Silk Congress Boot, c. 1865

French Blue Kid Shoes, c. 1868-1875

French Embroidered Boots, c. 1882-1888

French Bronzed Kid Chameleon Shoes, c. 1858-1865

English Silk Tartan Ankle Boot, c. 1860-1865

French Blue Silk Embroidered Evening Pumps, c. 1925-1927

French Bronzed Kid Chameleon Shoes , c. 1858-1866

English Olive Leather Shoes, c. 1800-1810

Hope you enjoyed all these lovelies!

♥

Sam Spade.......

We recently visited San Francisco for holiday and while there I discovered a wonderful vintage clothing store, Torso Vintages, downtown in the Financial District.  (One day when I win the lottery here in Australia, I'm going to take all my fortune and go crazy in this fantastic store).   If you're ever in San Francisco and want to be dazzled by a beautiful collection of clothing, then drop into:

If you can't make it to the shop, however, they do have online shopping at 1st Dibs.  But, it's really such a treat to be able to touch and hold all the treasures in the shop!

My husband only owns a couple of vintage clothing items, one of which we purchased at Torso Vintages this trip.  We found a wonderful brown fedora hat from the 1950's that was in almost new condition.   The hat still had it's original gold crest inside, along with the embroidered initials of the original owner.  We did some research on the maker, James Locke and Company, Ltd., and discovered that the company was founded in 1676, and counts among its customers, Prince Charles and Prince Phillip.

The Louisiana style fedora is really a classic and hasn't changed at all from the 1950's.   This is basically what the vintage hat we purchased looks like.  I keep thinking of Sam Spade whenever my husband wears it!

My husband definitely goes for quality over quantity in his vintage clothing because the other piece he owns is an amazing Hawaiian shirt from the 1950's, which he wears to the Fifties Fair we go to in Sydney every August.    I'll save that story for another post and show you some photos of the shirt then.  Stay tuned....

♥