The D-Day special Blitz Party - London

[Miss Honey Bare]

Hello all,

Just wondering if any of you vintage lovelies are heading down the Blitz Party in East London this Saturday (5th June)?

It would be great to meet in person.

 

[Kate O Potato]

Sadly not I. I went to one about a year ago and it was cramped, hot and overpriced. I sent the organisers an email with suggestions about how to improve it (I wanted them to get a Lindy Hop instructor in so everyone could have a go at dancing) but I don't know if it's improved any.
If you are going, don't wear an ATS uniform, you WILL melt.

 

[Miss Honey Bare]

Duly noted.
I hope it's not too hot and cramped.

Though they have been running them again this year and I have heard good things.

*fingers crossed*

 

[Fleur De Guerre]

I have only been to the Blitz party once and I didn't really enjoy it. When you wear vintage and vintage hair every day (and in my chap's case, have a moustache), you take your risks of being stared at/attracting comments etc. I don't want to go to a so-called '40s event' and be badgered constantly for several hours about my look/clothes/hair! The boyfriend got completely fed up of being stared at and repeatedly asked whether his moustache is real. Plus the prices at the bar were outrageous and inconsistent. It's not really an event for vintage-lovers, it's an event for normal people to dress up in costume and party. Absolutely no problem with it, just not my bag!

 

[Kate O Potato]

I'd pretty much agree with that; there were lots of Topshop frocks and ladies dressed as flappers when I went (yes, flappers!), which amused me for the first ten minutes, but it sort of removes the fun after a while.

The London Swing Dance Society do evenings on the HMS Belfast and in the Cabinet War Rooms every now and then, complete with swing classes and a less expensive bar, so that might be worth looking into, Miss Honey Bare.

 

[Halfjill]

I've never heard of it before, but it does sound like a lot of fun. These things usually are crammed and sweaty, but isn't that the idea of a good party! lol You could always sneak your own drinks in! Like I do at the cinema..well, not alcoholic drinks of course.

Kate O I don't think there is anything wrong with Top Shop dresses! I get some beautiful clothes from the high-street, and I can't afford to go to expensive boutiques and wear real vintage clothing all the time. I think its great that you can find 40's/50's inspired clothes in the shops at the moment, of course the trend will wear off for some, but it's great for us.
Accessories on the other hand though, you can't beat finishing off an outfit with some vintage delights.
Hopefully without green rings around your finger.

 

[Kate O Potato]

Kate O I don't think there is anything wrong with Top Shop dresses! I get some beautiful clothes from the high-street, and I can't afford to go to expensive boutiques and wear real vintage clothing all the time. I think its great that you can find 40's/50's inspired clothes in the shops at the moment, of course the trend will wear off for some, but it's great for us.

I wasn't saying there was anything wrong with Topshop dresses per se (fwiw I own a few, and in my experience they are quite disappointingly made considering the price tag), but that they stuck out like a sore thumb at an event where the dress code was '1940s homefront'. Admittedly, at times they produce some 40s-inspired dresses but this usually means taking a floral fabric, having a stab at a tea dress, and shortening it by about 6 inches. In the case of the Blitz Party, a lot of girls didn't even have these, which (and especially when you've made a huge effort to track down an ATS uniform) completely alters the mood, because I could well have gone down the road to a club filled with Shoreditch trendies for a similar experience. I wanted to go to a party where there were people who wanted to put in the same amounts of effort as myself and my young man, and have a dance to good music, not struggle to find space to dance because some mini-skirted lass was standing stock still in a diva pose, pouting over a £7 cocktail and occupying the only available space.

And I can't find anything vintage inspired on the high street at the moment! You need to take me shopping, clearly

 

[Deleted member 12480]

i'm afraid i have to agree with the topshop comment.
i used to love the shop but have recently come to notice that the skirts really are far too short. Inface since i started wearing vintage i have realised just HOW short they are and i am horrified that i used to nearly show my pants when i ent down a year ago.

and i am the age bracket STEREOTYPED to be wearing that kind of thing!!
xxx

 

[Fleur De Guerre]

Yeah, I mean no offense to you personally Halfjill, but I am a real vintage snob when it comes to so called '40s events' and people dressed in low-cut pencil skirts and mini-skirted tea dresses, and flapper fancy dress costumes. Many of my vintage frocks from eBay and Etsy have cost less than £20 and most of them less than £50, and that would barely buy you a jersey mini-dress in TopShop! The Blitz parties now sell out so far in advance that there's no excuse for not coming up with something a bit more in keeping with the theme, but people don't, because as I said earlier, they are just big club parties where people dress up in a vaguely vintage costume and dance the night away! Absolutely nothing wrong with it, and non-vintage hipstery people have an absolute blast and a half, which is great! You just won't find me there! And when the craze has died down, I'll still be doing my thing! lol

I find the high street to be great for basics like cardigans, blouses and stripey tshirts etc, but if you're going to buy a dress, or a pair of trousers, then genuine vintage or the UK's growing number of repro companies are very comparable in price (unless you're talking Primark, and I don't find their poor quality clothes to be worth the small price ...or the guilt), and (obv) look much more authentic.

 

[miserabelle]

I did want to go to it, but I really don't think I can afford it at the minute (saving for a mortgage - oh the fun).

It's a shame you ladies weren't happy with it, is there anything similar that you'd recommend? x

 

[Kate O Potato]

I did want to go to it, but I really don't think I can afford it at the minute (saving for a mortgage - oh the fun).

It's a shame you ladies weren't happy with it, is there anything similar that you'd recommend? x

As I say, keep an eye on the London Swing Dance Society's events at http://www.swingdanceuk.com/calendar.htm
If you scroll down to the bottom then they have a couple of special events coming up. Admittedly, it's aimed at people who like the dancing of the era, but I think most people who go are also into the clothes (they're inextricably bound in my case), so there's usually a fair few who are dressed spectacularly. And they're all super lovely.
If you go to a Cabinet War Rooms event then everyone will definitely be dressed up. And the great thing is that you get dance lessons, so it's not like the Blitz party, where people stand around not knowing how to dance to the music.

Keep an eye out on the Chap's website as well, they usually list a few upcoming events around the place.
http://www.thechap.net

Oh, and re: affordable vintage, I got my ATS uniform from here... http://sabresales.co.uk
I made a trip to their shop, but they're just as helpful via email. I got a blouse, skirt, tie, jacket, bag, hat and all buttons/attachments for about £80. The hat cost the most at £25, and the buttons were the second most expensive items! The blouse only cost me a few quid, and I'm pretty sure the skirt (a really thick wool one which I wore to work pretty constantly over the winter!) was about £10 tops. Not bad at all, I reckon! I'm going to go back this summer hopefully, and get some WAAF uniform items.

 

[Miss Honey Bare]

So, I was a little worried that The Blitz party would be rather rubbish after the comments on here, but I have to say that it was good fun and for every person that didn't look quite right, there were ten people who did.

I feel that it is important that people should be allowed to play 'dress up' if they like and enjoy the fun of the forties. Not everyone lives ut 24/7.
I myself am personally more of a psychobilly than anything else.

The music was great, the drinks were delicious and an average price for the area. There was all sorts of things going on and everyone was very friendly and polite.

There were some funny outfits too. There was a wounded soldier complete with bloody, torn uniform. A nurse and her patient and a press reporter. But I felt that they simply added an element of fun to it. I don't feel the need for eveything to have to be 100% accurate to have a good time.

The only rudeness I encountered was from a group of three women I heard saying in a mocking tone 'Oh, I'm meant to be from the 1940's but I'm covered in tattoos' - referring to me and my inked arms. I felt that they
were just being snobby, I have had an interest in everything 1940's and 50's since I was a little girl and feel I probably knw just as much about the era as they did.

As for it being too cramped and hot, it did get a tad stuffy (it is held in tunnels after all) but I can imagine that a blitz party would be stuffy. And there was plenty of clear areas for you to go a chill out and get some cooler air.

I hope to go again and that others will not be put off by it not being a totally, purist, 100% perfectly 1940's.

 

[Puzzicato]

i'm afraid i have to agree with the topshop comment.
i used to love the shop but have recently come to notice that the skirts really are far too short. Inface since i started wearing vintage i have realised just HOW short they are and i am horrified that i used to nearly show my pants when i ent down a year ago.

and i am the age bracket STEREOTYPED to be wearing that kind of thing!!
xxx

I think it is partly the fashion of the last couple of seasons - all the skirts are unbelieveably short this year!

 

[Rosie_Beau]

About Topshop

My sister loves Topshop and usually looks really good (modern). And when I was at college if I saw someone in class and said "that's lovely - where did you get it from?" they would usually say Topshop (or H&M). BUT. Whenever I used to go to Topshop I could never find a single thing I really liked. And all the things I sort of liked only looked good on the thin girls and I just like cake too much for that.
And YES the skirts are teeny tiny! Why so expensive for such little fabric??
Very badly made; H&M too.
These days Topshop brings me out in hives. It's always sooo busy and I hate that.
So I guess The Blitz Party wouldn't be my cup of tea either (due to the crowds that is).
Each to their own though!
xxx

 

[Fleur De Guerre]

I feel that it is important that people should be allowed to play 'dress up' if they like and enjoy the fun of the forties. Not everyone lives ut 24/7.

...snip...

I hope to go again and that others will not be put off by it not being a totally, purist, 100% perfectly 1940's.

Well since this is pretty much what I said in my post (and exactly what I *meant*), then I agree with you. It's a fun 40s-themed costume party, that the vast majority of people that go have an absolute blast at. Great! The fact that it sells out weeks in advance tells me (and everyone else) that in fact, people are not put off in the slightest. As I said, it's only those of us who *are* 'purist', who do this every day, that don't have a good time there. We've all been once and never been back. But there is a pretty tiny number of us 'purists' compared to the vast numbers of girls who like putting on a tea dress (or a flapper costume) and partying like it's 1945. I'm glad you had a good time Honey Bare, despite what the other women said. And sounds to me like they know sod all about the vintage scene anyway, because us 'purists' have tons of tattooed friends... it's just the way the scene is as so many people came to it through rockabilly/punk/metal/goth etc. You'd never find me or any of my friends slagging off rockabellas or tattooed 40s girls. Being purist only relates to my own clothing, and the 'vintage' events that I choose to attend, which I want to be full of likeminded people. And the Blitz isn't. So I don't go. But I am glad the people I know that do go, who dabble in vintage, do have a good time. Everyone's happy!

 

[YesterdayGirl]

Dances at the Cabinet War Rooms

If you go to a Cabinet War Rooms event then everyone will definitely be dressed up.


Just to let you know, so as not to disappoint, I work at the CWR and they will no longer be doing any dance events. Apparently it doesn't make us enough money. Boo hoo

 

[Deleted member 12480]

'Oh, I'm meant to be from the 1940's but I'm covered in tattoos' - referring to me and my inked arms. .

how rude!