Review: Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs spray tan

I am the palest of the pale and have never given a damn about it: I don't tan, and I rarely can be bothered with messing around with fiddly fake tan creams.

However, I am going to a Seventies do in a few weeks and plan to wear some very skimpy shorts, and even my hatred of tanning blanches at the idea of people seeing my post winter practically blue thighs. So I decided to try out some spray on leg make up. The brand I went for is Sally Hansen's Airbrush Legs:

The blurb claims: "Spray on Perfect Legs in an instant!". Hmmm...

Purchasing it was confusing as the descriptions of the two shades available weren't exactly clear which was the darker. I went for 'medium glow'.

Coming to try this out this morning, I discovered that despite saying 'spray on' the instructions actually tell you to spray it onto your hands and then rub in, which left me wondering what the difference to normal self tan creams is.

I bathed, exfoliated and moisturised an hour of so before applying, then stood in the bath to apply it, for the sake of my carpets. I started by trying to spray it onto my hands as the instructions said, but found that this went on in a rather streaky fashion, so I tried spraying it on directly instead then rubbing in. And this worked far better! It was somewhat tricky to get to the hard to reach places, but over all I was quite pleased with the even-ness of the coverage in the end. I used it all over my body (it's only meant for legs) but this has given me the most authentic all over tan I've ever had! Here's a 'halfway' photo showing one leg tanned, one still pasty:

I would recommend being careful to wash the bottom of your feet and carefully dry them on a towel you don't mind getting stained before walking around the house - when I got out of the bath, I left a couple of cute footprints!

Overall, I find the colour probably more orange than I would want to use for normal wear, but pretty authentic for a 1970's tanned look. It worked pretty well, although the claim of 'in an intant' isn't exactly accurate - although it probably is quicker than many other self tan products. I will update on how well it lasts over the next couple of days.

Listening to the Kings Speech

My father's 80th birthday is in a couple of weeks, and I have been editing together a film of his life. My grandfather was a keen user of cinefilms and was lucky enough to be able to afford colour film back in the 1930s. This means we have an unusual (for that era) record of my Dad's family life as a child right through that era. I never knew my grandparents, so it's also an important emotional connection to them for me.

And, of course, I just love looking at all the beautiful period detailing on the films, and the fabulous dresses and clothes my grandmother and her friends wore at the time! At some point (when I've finished my Dad's film), I'm planning on pulling out some short clips of the more lovely examples to share here.

In the meantime however, I have found this historically interesting clip that has some current relevance. I've been meaning to post this up since going to see The King's Speech a few weeks ago. It is my grandparents listening to World War Two being announced, and then listening to the King's speech of the films climax later on that same day:

They clearly saw it is so important that they should record listening to it, but having watched the film and learned more about the struggle to deliver it, watching this clip now has a whole load more meaning and context for me.

___

Meanwhile, a few thoughts on Livia Firth's controversial Oscars dress. The idea of cutting up 11 wearable original 1930s dresses to make one very modern looking one just makes me wince (although it's hard to judge just how wearable they were; see the shop's comments here: http://www.ecorazzi.com/2011/03/02/livia-firths-oscars-dress-sparks-vintage-controversy/ ). I can see what she was trying to do; she had a fantastic opportunity to raise the profile of the eco message and vintage fashion, and at the same time promote a British designer and a vintage shop. The intention was certainly well meant.

I'm very much into eco-politics myself, so this issue makes me feel torn. The 'upcycling' of vintage clothes has always left me torn just generally. I don't believe things should be left to moulder if new life can be breathed into them again. Our ancestors often took old clothes and refashioned them to adapt them to later times, and vintage examples of this (thirties dresses adapted to be worn during the forties cloth restricted times, for example) can be fascinating. I also find myself thinking of the amazing Eltham Palace (http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/eltham-palace-and-gardens/ ), where art deco architecture was merged with an ancient building to create something truy beautiful and unique, that in this day and age, the protections on ancient buildings would never allow now. But on the other hand, the fashion historian in me mourns the history that has been lost when you cut up an old dress - the stories it has to tell about construction, style, social history and the person who owned it, lost forever.

Perhaps the real litmus test should be whether this recreated dress will one day become 'vintage' in itself with it's own stories to tell. It's not to my taste, but perhaps it will. To my own taste, I think the dress she wore to the BAFTA's was far more beautiful and iconic - now there's a dress to be lusted after in the future; http://www.vogue.co.uk/blogs/livia-firth/110213-livia-firth-ethical-nina-skarra-dress-for-the-2011-baftas.aspx

A 60's moment

So I'm having a bit of a sixties moment in my own personal style at the moment. It all started with this little blue number I picked up when rifling through my motheers old clothes at Christmas;

She made it herself back in the 1960s, out of some cheap upholstery fabric she picked up somewhere. Back then of course, it was cheaper to buy some fabric and whip it up into a new outfit for the weekend than to go out and buy a ready made dress. That's sadly not so true in these days of Primarni.

I love this dress though, and luckily it's a perfect fit. I love it's simplicity and the little nipped in waist. Here's the back view;

I find it amusing that my mother insists she never wore skirts above the knee because she was a 'good church girl' who always wore modest clothes. Well, I'm only an inch or so taller than my mother, and this little dress comes quite a bit higher than knee high, so I suspect this was one of the times she tested the boundaries a bit as a young woman! It's funny now to think what a 'moral' issue the length of a skirt used to be - these days my only concerns when wearing a short skirt are purely practical ones!

Focus on: 1920's hat

I want to make sure that my new coat goes with one of my favourite items: this 1920's hat.

I've had this about five years, it having been a leaving gift from a previous job. Working in Islington, and my workmates knowing about my vintage obsession, I was taken on a little shopping trip to one of my favourite vintage shops in the area; Cloud Cuckoo Land in Camden Passage. I've spent very many happy lunch hours browsing in this wonderful shop, and on this occasion I came out with a twenties dress and this hat.

I'm thinking about trying to add decorations to the coat to match the hat, but the technique it's decorated in is a little tricky. Whilst from a distance it looks like it's beaded, it is in fact decorated with lengths of shiney piping sewn on in such a way that they reflect like beads.

Very pretty, but hard to replicate. Although somewhat delicate, it turns out. I do keep it in a hat box, but the very old stitching is starting to come away in a few places. It's quite small, just about ok for my head, but at times I have worn it over twenties style wigs, which I'm concerned might have put a bit too much strain on it. I'm considering how to go about mending it, but I may possibly just have to just wear it a lot less.

It has a makers label inside: 'Aileen, Paris, New York' but I've never been able to find any information about them.

1920s coat progress

So I've been stuck in bed with  stinking cold the last few days, and since trying to understand sewing patterns when you have a fever is generally a bad plan, I am now rather behind with putting my 1920s style coat together!

Still, I have managed to catch up today, and some good effort tomorrow should get me most of the way there. Cutting the pieces out seemed to take forever (cutting is my least favourite part of sewing);

But now I have managed to get the collar in, so just those tricky arms and lining still to do;

I have gone for cream brushed cotton (because it was cheaper than wool) with black velvet collar and cuffs. The idea is for it to both go with my original cream 1920s day dress and also my gorgeous original black cloche hat (which I shall show off later). In my head it works well, although I'm a little nervous about the reality - still, the proof will be in the pudding! so long as I get it finished in time...

A vintage valentines gentleman

This made me smile yesterday on a particularly horrible commute home last night;

I live in a rather lovely block of flats built in the 1930s, with lovely art deco style windows and doors. One of the other residents is a rather remarkable old gent (I hesitate to speculate on age, but he's certainly silvery haired) who can only be said to dress in exquisitely vintage gentleman's attire. In the winter, he goes out perfectly groomed with his grey pinstriped trousers, black overcoat umbrella and bowler hat. I wondered at first whether he was just one of those City workers who still dress in the old bankers uniform, but in the summer he instead appears in a blazer, boater and cane. He looks entirely fabulous in each, and the boater particularly always makes me smile, as I always imagine he is off to a tete-a-tete with some glamourous older lady.

Anyway, last night I was experiencing a horrendous journey home. The tubes and train were crammed with people either trying to get home for valentines evening or trying to get out for a valentines date, and then the Central line went down, causing massive overcrowding. When I finally got on a train home, the commuters were all, like me, in a thoroughy foul mood. Then there was some kind of 'incident' on a train ahead, and we were all trapped on a hugely crowded train stuck in the middle of no-where, being diverted to Staines.

Now, I was lucky enough to have a seat, but these commuter trains are a pretty horrendous experience if you're standing and it's crowded. I have fainted on them myself in the past, and seen others do so too. Some poor lass was apparently showing signs of doing just that, as suddenly a melifuous male voice insisted that this girl take his seat. I turned around to see that it was this very same fabulous old gent, despite being the elder of the two, offering, nay insisting that she take his seat, as she clearly needed it more. The poor girl protested but he was quite firm. Then, when a couple of stops later, she got off the train, he insisted one of the other ladies left standing take the seat despite her offering it to him.

So this perfectly attired gentleman (with a quite remarkable voicem it must be said!) proved himself to be a true gentleman in action as well (unlike any of the other blokes on the train, it has to be noted). This somehow pleases me immensley, and really does make the point that vintage is not just about age, it's about quality too.

Making time: 1920's coat

I'm heading off to a 1920's event next Friday which I've signed up to at the last minute. I've been having lots of fun digging out all my lovely twenties outfits, both original and replica and trying out different combinations, and starting to carefully pack them away in my georgeous portmantue. However - horror of horrors! - I can't find my twenties style coat any where!!

It's not an original, thank goodness, but I spent a long time tracking down a coat like this in charity shops all over the place. It's just simple black wool but the key part is that it had a lovely faux fur collor and was about the right shape to properly set off my 1920's outfits. Unfortunately never got many pictures of it, but his is one of the better photos of me in it (yes, I was trying to look all snooty on purpose!);

Anyway, I have a great fear that the last time we had a big flat clear out, the coat I said "yes you can chuck that one" to my husband may not have been the horrible old eighties coat I'd long gone off after all, but instead this much nicer one instead *sob*

So what to do? Well, I did take a wander around my favourite vintage shops, going goo-goo over the beautiful originals they had, but at prices starting around £200+ for good ones, I really can't justify the expenditure at the moment (one day, one day...!) So instead I am going for the option of making one instead.

after a bit of internet browsing, I fixed on this pattern:

http://www.habithat.co.uk/product_info.php/products_id/5410

planning to make the wide collared version. I was very impressed with Habithat, who got the pattern to me overnight. Having been whisked off for a romantic valentines weekend by my hubby (of which more later), I didn't get started on it this weekend, so I have just one weekend and 9 weekday evenings to get this made in. In my luch hour I trotted out and bought some creamy fabric and black velvet for the contrast collar and cuffs, so tonight I'll be getting started on the cutting. Will update on progress (or lack of it!) as I go...