Comments You Get When You Dress Vintage

[shepkatt]

Flappers to the back door

The last one I can remember - because we laughed about it for quite awhile afterwards - was during the Bal Rendezvous at the Balboa Pavilion. I was picking up food for the band for that evening at Subway and had a few of my friends with me. We were all dressed and gussied up 1940-esque.. When I went to the counter to let them know I was there to pickup the sandwhich platters I was told to meet the gal at the back door and she would hand it all off to me. There were a group of beach bummy/biker looking guys in the Subway at the time and as my friends and I were walking out to go meet the gal to get the food the guys were saying "Flappers go to the back door to pick up their food".. Earlier they had told us we looked nice.. so I just chalk it up to lack of knowledge re: fashions and which decades they come from. But it was pretty funny.

 

[Lillemor]

Vintage, retro and period styling are all new terms in my vocabulary that have only been added within the past six years. However, I've always been had a fascination with 1920s-1950s apparel and what I thought women wore so I've often tried to encoporate era styling into my outfits. The comments I've received from my maternal grandmother (1911 farmer's daughter) and MIL (1937 farmer's daughter) both Danish, who have both lived and worked most of their lives in cities, is very telling about women from their background and generation:

"Is that something you've learnt in California?" *laughs*
"That must have been a style you've seen on your Californian grandmother" *snicker* are just a few of the comments. mgrandma: "Wipe some of that lippy off! It's vulgar!" MIL: "Nice lippy, what are we celebrating?".

I can tell from photos that these women only had their hair bobbed or some short style for a few big occasions like their communion and wedding. Otherwise, their hair has always been long, bunned, twisted, and/or braided. No cosmetics for mgrandma, lipstick ok for MIL on special evening occasions. Apparel was always functional, comfortable, and durable.
They compliment me if the outfit is subtly pretty but any attempt to create a "Hollywood" inspired or as they simply call it "California look" is frowned upon.

I remember having my hair bobbed after a disasterous perm, I'd daily comb out the curls so they'd be waves instead and I commented kiddingly that now I looked like Bette Davis. "who?!" Erh...then I tried to suggest that I looked a bit like Marilyn Monroe "who?!" but they weren't very convincing in their attemp to pretend they hadn't heard of that namelol But it's very clear that neither lady think of Monroe as an icon as so many women do today.

When I had short hair I told my MIL that now I could pass for Audrey Hepburn *sarcasm*. She had no idea whom I was talking about so I said she was "big" around the same time as Grace Kelly. "Oh, she's the one who married a prince" *hmfr!*. After a while she asked why I would want to look like "women like that?".

This is only my second post and it's at least as long as my first intro post Don't worry, my posts won't always be this long. I just feel I have to explain a bit more now that I'm new.

The good news is that I can grow my hair out, just make sure it's never worn loose and no one will point out that it's not period

 

[Smuterella]

well, apart from one girl at work who gets it and calls me "forties girl" the overwhelming comment of the lastmonth is from my HR Manager so apparently says that I "brighten up" our office with my "individual style"

He is a reputed lech though

was out in a pub today and got ridiculous amounts of attention for my highwaisted Freddies of Pinewood jeans and retro keds. it seems boys love that look...

 

[CherryRed]

fftopic: Lillemor your avatar is gorgeous! Who is that?

 

[Slim Portly]

Today I wore a grey 2-piece pinstripe suit with a black vest, a baby blue dress shirt, a lack and blue tie with a crystal tie pin, crystal and silver cuff links, black wingtips and charcoal socks, a grey fedora, and a pocket watch. Basically the first impression you'd get is a guy in a hat wearing a grey suit with some kind of chain on the front.

I stopped by the store on the way home and when I approached the counter there were two young ladies looking at me and talking with each other. I heard one say to the other, "It's called 'Rockabilly.' " Then she turned to me and said, "Are you Rockabilly?" I said, "No." She said, "Oh. Are you going out tonight?" I said, "No, I'm on my way home from work." "You dress that way every day?" "Every day." They both smiled. "That's cool!"

 

[Lillemor]

fftopic: Lillemor your avatar is gorgeous! Who is that?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suraiya I don't understand a word of Hindi but their emoting in early Bollywood movies is very clear. I was watching Madhubala clips yesterday on youtube and I may change to Madhubala's avatar some time. I've underestimated these two actresses when I was first introduced to them in the 1990s because the VHS copies were so unclear but these were very talented women in their own rights.

 

[Lillemor]

Do any of you experience that when you do take the time to explain to someone why you dress "so strangely" (in their eyes) and if they don't understand why, then they begin to correct you or give you unsolicited advice?

 

[cherry lips]

Lillemor your post about your grandmother and MIL was fascinating. I don't have any old people friends or family, but am really interested in old peoples views on fashion etc. (I'm also too shy to approach 80 year olds in the street.) If anybody else has information like this, things your grandparents have said about old fashions or moviestars, please share!

 

[MaryDeluxe]

Today I got called "rosie" by the cashier girl at the book store. To which I replied, "WoW, what an original comment... Book Girl".

 

[Lillemor]

Lillemor your post about your grandmother and MIL was fascinating. I don't have any old people friends or family, but am really interested in old peoples views on fashion etc. (I'm also too shy to approach 80 year olds in the street.) If anybody else has information like this, things your grandparents have said about old fashions or moviestars, please share!

I hope other people have more positive support though I wish my paternal grandmother was still alive and well because her way of dressing and styling "back then" was closer to what I think most people here admirer about the styles of that time.

 

[kamikat]

OMG!!! I had the best weekend. My hubby and I went to a sci-fi convention. It was filled with lots of friends I hadn't seen in a while. I had been working hard to make sure that not only did I have day dresses for every day but party dresses for both Friday and Saturday night. The funny thing is that while not many people said things to my face, but reading the con wrap-up blog posts, several people went on and on. One guy even said that I looked like I walked out of a 1950's mail order catalog.

 

[Josephine]

fftopic: Kamikat, where did you go? Are you going to Shore Leave in July?

 

[kamikat]

fftopic: Kamikat, where did you go? Are you going to Shore Leave in July?

We were at Balticon, just outside of Baltimore. They've held it every Memorial Day weekend for decades. It has become THE con for podcasters. The next one I'm going to is DragonCon, Atlanta, Labor Day weekend. My husband goes to alot more, usually as an invited guest.

 

[Josephine]

We were at Balticon, just outside of Baltimore. They've held it every Memorial Day weekend for decades. It has become THE con for podcasters. The next one I'm going to is DragonCon, Atlanta, Labor Day weekend. My husband goes to alot more, usually as an invited guest.

I would LOVE to go to Dragon*Con. Alas, I cannot this year. Now you have to tell me who Hubby is! (You can PM me if you want)

 

[kamikat]

I would LOVE to go to Dragon*Con. Alas, I cannot this year. Now you have to tell me who Hubby is! (You can PM me if you want)

Unless you're into podcasts, you probably won't know him. His show is called The Commandline Podcast and he goes by "cmdln", which he tells me is a coding thing. At most of the cons, he talks about the tech side of podcasting or public policy concerning copyright issues, privacy issues and intellectual property issues. At both Balticon and DragonCon, he's there as staff and guest.

 

[Josephine]

Unless you're into podcasts, you probably won't know him. His show is called The Commandline Podcast ...

Heh. You're right.

 

[64tonya]

Ruby, Rosy, Lucy

Today I got called "rosie" by the cashier girl at the book store. To which I replied, "WoW, what an original comment... Book Girl".

Yeah, I got Ruby the other night. (Red polka dot top and Rosie the riveter hair) I'm a bartender and people feel like they can just rename me whatever suits them. "Hey Mrs Cleaver! Gimme a beer!" Yes, quite charming...

 

[KY Gentleman]

Yeah, I got Ruby the other night. (Red polka dot top and Rosie the riveter hair) I'm a bartender and people feel like they can just rename me whatever suits them. "Hey Mrs Cleaver! Gimme a beer!" Yes, quite charming...

Its great working with the public, ain't it? I could give you endless examples of such experiences but I know....you live it everyday, too! lol

 

[64tonya]

I think they mean well KY, (most of them) One night I had my hair up in big victory rolls and I threatened some of them with my secret martial art "hair kune do" I told them there was so much spray in my hair that if I headbutted them it would be like Bruce Lee's one-inch punch! All in good fun, they cracked up and my "secret" weapon has become an ongoing inside joke. lol

 

[shepkatt]

Yeah, I got Ruby the other night. (Red polka dot top and Rosie the riveter hair) I'm a bartender and people feel like they can just rename me whatever suits them. "Hey Mrs Cleaver! Gimme a beer!" Yes, quite charming...

64tonya - where do you bartend?